Talk of the nation rolls into union station • On September 28, Juan Williams hosted the popular National Public Radio show, Talk of The Nation, live from City Stage at Union Station in Kansas City. Among his guests were Irv Hockaday of Hallmark and Ed Maddox of Sprint as well as other Kansas City business execs and educators..

Among the relevant topics discussed was one of timely interest--attracting businesses and employees to the area. The Kansas City presentation was part of the show's "Changing Face of America" series.

BeyondNow finds angel • Overland Park-based BeyondNow raised $2.6 million in a second round of financing. Once again, the lead investor was Kansas City Equity Partners, a local group of venture capitalists. In 1997, this group was the sole investor in a series A private equity financing. The other primary investor in this second round was Jack Henry & Associates.

BeyondNow creates software for the home health and hospice market, a market with strong growth potential. The financing will enable the company to develop Web-based products.

New Chair for Blackwell Sanders • David Fenley has assumed the role of chairman at Blackwell Sanders peper Martin, a 300 attorney law firm headquartered in Kansas City and with offices now stretching from Omaha to London.

Until Fenley's selection, Blackwell Sanders had been managed by a seven-lawyer executive committee, one of the last of the major law firms to be so managed. the change in structure reflects the law firm's desire to grow both in size and in scope, and a full time or nearly full time chairman was thought to be essential for that to happen. Fenley, 45, has ben with the firm for 20 years and has been a partner for 15. His specialty has been real estate, and his clients include J.C. Nichols and J.E. Dunn among others.

Olympic gold achieved with local help • By now, the world knows that the American baseball team beat Cuba for the world series. But what few people know is that an Olathe firm , Recreational Technologies, helped manager Tommy LaSorda to chart pitches and hits for the U.S. Olympic team.

The new technology enabled the American to get a grasp on their opponents with whom they were largely unfamiliar.

Freight house district packs them in • The city's newest and trendiest arts and entertainment district will soon be home to several of Kansas City's spiffiest new restaurants, among them the Grand Central Oyster Bar & Restaurant and Jack Stack Barbecue, just now open for business. They join the highly popular Lidia's Restaurant.

In addition, developer Mike Rainen has announced plans for a $32.9 million renovation of the H.D. Lee Building on West 20th Street. Current plans call for a mix of offices, apartments, and stores, plus a 330 space parking garage. The TIF commission has already approved TIF financing for the project of more than $7 million. If all goes as planned, the project should be completed within three years.

Golf tourney raises scratch for med museum • An October golf tournament will help Medicine's Hall of Fame and Museum on its way to the estimated $5 million needed to complete project. The project is the brainchild of Dr. Bruce Hodges and his wife, Cathy. For 20 years the Hodges have been dreaming of bringing the history of medicine to the Kansas City area. The facility will honor those who have made significant contributions to health and will exhibit and interpret artifacts from medical history. Groundbreaking is planned for the end of the year 2002 on a site at 121st Street and K-7 highway just north of Olathe.

Teachers move into science city • By October 3rd, more than 1500 teachers from across Kansas and Missouri will have descended on Union Station's Science City to explore its 50 environments and to learn about its many discovery areas.

There will also be an introduction to the fall exhibit of Science City, Remember The Children, Daniel's Story, opening October 20 in the KCPL City Gallery in Union Station. This interactive exhibit tells the story of a Jewish boy and his family in Nazi Germany. The exhibit was conceived for children and told from a child's point of view.

Bulls Could be running again in kc • Major League Bull Riding (MLBR) is looking over 20 cities--KC and St. Louis among them--as sites for its summer of 2001 debut season.

10 years in the planning, the MLBR plans to have eight teams in its initial season. The choice of cities now depends largely on the city's ability to come up with financing.

W does KC • George W. Bush brought his entourage to Kansas City for an enthusiastic town hall meeting at Kansas City's Gem Theater on September 18. before the event he and wife, Laura, toured the Negro Baseball League Museum and the Jazz Hall of Fame, two attractions which need all the PR they can get based on disappointing attendance figures recently announced. Senator Kit Bond hosted the event which was attended by many other office holders and seekers as well.

Look for George W. to make a very public return engagement before the election on November 7th.