You’ve probably experienced Deanna Rose Children’s Farmstead and the Overland Park Arboretum & Botanical Garden, but you may not know who makes those first-class attractions possible.

In 1995, the City of Overland Park created The Arts & Recreation Foundation of Overland Park as a non-profit organization to promote and provide cultural amenities in the city, including the Farmstead and Arboretum. According to Wes Jenson, Senior Vice President at Stoltz Management, the foundation is essential to our community’s success.

“The foundation does outstanding work in our community, which becomes a selling tool for businesses trying to attract employees to Overland Park,” said Jenson. “The entire business community is tied together here, and we all benefit from having top-notch parks and recreation.”

The organization is in the middle of a capital campaign with a goal of raising $12 million to build a world-class visitor center for the Arboretum. Their plan is to create a dynamic space to host events, classrooms for educational programs, an art gallery, gift shop, and much more!

One of the organization’s annual fundraisers is Stems: A Garden Soiree on June 24th, 2017 at the Overland Park Arboretum & Botanical Gardens. As a guest, you can experience the Arboretum while tasting food from 24 restaurants and sipping on fine wines, craft beers, and specialty mixed drinks.

“It is a fantastic venue because everything is spread out and offers something for everyone to enjoy,” said Jenson. “It’s a great way to showcase the Arboretum while raising money to support our community.”

This year, Jenson and his wife, Debbie, are the Honorary Chairs of the event, and Stoltz Management and Corporate Woods are Platinum-level sponsors. Jenson said he is looking forward to doing what he can to make the evening a success.

“It’s an honor to be affiliated with the foundation, and I’m excited to help them raise contributions and sponsorships,” said Jenson. “It’s surprising how many people haven’t been to the Arboretum, and I’ve been encouraging everyone to come experience it at the event.”

According to Jenson, he also uses the event as a chance to spread the word about the opportunities available at Corporate Woods.

“It’s one of the best networking events of the season and an opportunity to visit with key business, community, and political leaders in our community,” said Jenson. “We also use it as a chance to talk about the outstanding things happening in the office park.

We hope you will consider supporting The Arts & Recreation Foundation of Overland Park and the work they do in our community.