On August 1, 1993 Mr. K (Ewing Kauffman) died. It is so hard to believe he passed away 16 years ago. I still go by Kauffman Gardens and pay my respect to him on a regular basis…that’s the least I can do for a man who has given me and our community so much. I was privileged to work with Mr. K for about two years at the Kauffman Foundation. In those two years I learned so much.

Here are some of the comments I remember Mr. K saying:

• Treat others as you would like to be treated.
• Pour cold water warmly
• If you give kids hope for the future and let them know that someone cares for them, you’ll be surprised at what they can achieve
• You must listen a lot…you learn more from listening than talking
• You owe more to society than just making a profit
• If you give people responsibility, you must give them authority…permit them to make a mistake in order for them to develop as leaders
• The more intelligent you are, the more you get input from others
• Above all, it’s a people factor that will be the secret of your success
• Once a person has food, clothing and shelter, the most motivating force in the world is appreciation.

Mr. K was a very wise man. He walked his talk and he was a mentor to many people. He was a common man who was always striving for uncommon results – in business, sports and philanthropy. I count myself very fortunate to have met and worked with this outstanding leader.

A group of foundation leaders who fund programs in Kansas recently met with Gov. Mark Parkinson. In my opinion, Gov. Parkinson is a hard working, compassionate and honorable person. I am so impressed that he looks at issues without being overly concerned about the politics of the issues. He simply is trying to do what he thinks is right. It is so refreshing to see a politician with this kind of integrity.

Gosh, I wish he was in Washington DC during the debate on health reform. Democrats in the House are not consulting with Republicans in drafting legislation. House Republicans are for the most part simply opposed to whatever Democrats propose. It is so disappointing to see elected officials act in a way that is so immature and dangerous to our future. Both sides are already talking about the 2010 election and how they will use the upcoming health care votes to raise money. Shouldn’t elected officials from both political parties be working together to see how a new health bill can be drafted to provide quality and affordable health insurance to all Americans?

I was proud to work on the staff of Senator Tom Eagleton in Washington DC for over seven years. He, like Gov. Parkinson, was a person of integrity who always voted his conscious and worked with people on all sides of an issue to reach a common solution. Sen. Eagleton and Sen. John Danforth represented Missouri in the U.S. Senate and it was very common to see these two leaders from different political parties often consulting with each other trying to determine what was best for the state of Missouri and for our country.

It seems to me that the current political culture in Washington D.C. is not helpful to obtaining good public policy.

My dad was a small business person who owned, bought and sold several small businesses over the years. He loved being his own boss and having the freedom to run his company just like he wanted to.

As a small business owner, he valued treating the folks he worked with compassion and he always provided them with health and retirement benefits. My dad never had a lot of rules or policies but he did expect his employees to work hard and to treat the customers with respect and dignity. When my dad died many of his employees told me heartwarming stories about how he treated them.

In today’s world I wonder if my dad would have been able to provide health care and other benefits to his employees. Small business folks are the back bone of the American economy and they are the economic engine that drives our region. In the current economic environment, small businesses are being stretched to their limit. Owners of small businesses want to do right thing for their employees but the rising cost of health care is making it very difficult for them to provide quality health care coverage at an affordable cost.

That is why small business groups from around the country are actively involved in the health policy debate that is taking place in Washington, DC. They realize our current health care system is broken. Policy makers at the federal and state level need to listen to small business folks because they often times have very different solutions to our current health care situation than do large corporations, insurance and pharmaceutical companies.