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We can't wait to see you on August 20, 2022!
The annual Night at the Elms promises to be a fun evening for a good cause. Join us for dinner and drinks at the beautiful, historic Elms Hotel, the site where Harry Truman discovered he had been re-elected. Not only do our events help raise funds to turn Clay County blue, they are also invaluable opportunities for you and your friends to engage personally with local and statewide elected officials and candidates.
Night at the Elms is Currently SOLD OUT
To join our Waiting list, please fill the out the following Link
Hotel Accommodations
The Elms Hotel in Excelsior Springs, Mo
Room Reservations are first-come, first-served.
*There are currently No Rooms Available*
Guest Speakers
Rachel Sweet:
Campaign Manager for Kansans for Constitutional Freedom, the coalition of Reproductive Rights Advocates and allied organizations that defeated the anti-abortion constitutional amendment in Kansas on August 2nd. Previously, Rachel served as the Director of Public Policy & Organizing for Planned Parenthood Great Plains, overseeing the organization's lobbying, electoral and grassroots organizing work in Kansas and western Missouri. She lives in Kansas City and has been involved in progressive politics on both sides of the state line for nearly a decade.
Mayor Quinton Lucas:
Born and raised in Kansas City, Mayor Q has spent most of his life in the city’s urban core. As a child, his family moved often and even experienced homelessness. Despite these challenges, Quinton remained focused on his schoolwork, earning academic scholarships to high school, college and eventually Cornell Law School before returning home to Kansas City.
Mayor Q has led Kansas City in launching an innovative Zero Fair Transit initiative, making all public transit fare free in Kansas City. Working with grassroots organizations, he also led the City Council in adopting the City’s first-ever Tenants’ Bill of Rights. Mayor Q remains focused on decriminalizing poverty and providing second chances, which is why he led the City Council in removing possession of marijuana as a violation from the City Code of Ordinances and launched a Municipal Marijuana Pardon Program. He is chairman of the U.S. Conference of Mayors' Criminal and Social Justice Committee, and co-chair of Accelerator for America, an organization dedicated to helping cities pull down federal infrastructure dollars and deliver on transformative projects for their residents.
Mayor Lucas remains focused on public safety, leading with decisiveness during the COVID-19 pandemic to save lives, as well as addressing the decades-long problem of violent crime in Kansas City. Understanding that the city needs long-term, sustainable solutions to fighting violent crime, Mayor Q continues working to decriminalize poverty—including ensuring unpaid parking tickets can no longer lead to incarceration—and build police-community trust through accountability measures.
Mayor Q has been a member of the University of Kansas Law School faculty since 2012, where he teaches local and state government law. Mayor Q is active in Kansas City as a volunteer in area schools and organizations, including providing mentorship in local prisons.
U.S. Senate Candidate Trudy Busch Valentine:
Trudy is the daughter of Gertrude Buholzer Busch and August (Gussie) Anheuser Busch Jr., who grew the Anheuser-Busch companies into the largest brewery in the world. Trudy grew up at Grant’s Farm with her six siblings and credits her parents and the workers at Grant’s Farm for forming “the village” that raised her, with many of them becoming friends, mentors, and co-workers who shaped who she is today.
Trudy’s faith and Jesuit education instilled in her the core values that she lives by to this day: “The pursuit of truth for the greater glory of God and for the service of humanity.” In 2007 Trudy earned a Master of Arts in Pastoral studies from the Aquinas Institute of Theology.
Service to her community has inspired Trudy her entire life. She graduated from Saint Louis University with a nursing degree in 1980, and she worked at the Salvation Army Residence for Children, where she cared for vulnerable and homeless children.
Trudy’s life has been touched by personal tragedy, which has deepened her commitment to support other families facing tough circumstances. Trudy’s husband John Valentine died of cancer when he was only 49 years old, leaving her a single mom raising six children. In 2020, Trudy’s oldest son Matthew died after a years-long battle with opioid addiction. Trudy is keenly aware that we need real answers to the opioid epidemic that has taken the lives of too many Missourians.
Trudy is still a nurse at heart today. Trudy serves on a nursing board and works with multiple charitable organizations that focus on children’s issues. In 2019, Saint Louis University established the “Trudy Busch Valentine School of Nursing.” During the COVID-19 pandemic, Trudy volunteered to vaccinate Missourians, and she administered hundreds of shots. And as a former nurse, she knows first-hand how precious healthcare is to families, and how important it is to get healthcare costs down so that every family can have access to quality care.