Giving: City Year Kansas City Named 2025 Building Community Award Winner

We’re excited to announce that nonprofit City Year Kansas City is the recipient of the 2025 Gerry Rauenhorst Building Community Award!

Since kicking off their pilot program ten years ago, City Year Kansas City has been making a difference for students throughout Kansas City by creating school environments where young people feel they belong, so they can build on their strengths and fully engage in their learning.

Honoring Our Founder with the Building Community Award

To honor our founder's legacy of giving, we launched the Gerry Rauenhorst Building Community Award in 2015 along with the Opus Foundation.

Fueled by unwavering optimism, Gerry demonstrated an entrepreneurial spirit, creativity and a commitment to finding a better way to build a business, community and value-centered life. With an enduring belief that business has a responsibility to strengthen society, Gerry ensured giving back was a cornerstone of our organization.

Annually, the Opus Foundation awards a grant to an impactful nonprofit totaling $1,000 for each year since Gerry founded the business that has grown into Opus we know today.

Earlier this year, our Kansas City office was randomly selected to choose this year’s nonprofit recipient.

Building a Better Future

City Year Kansas City believes that all students can succeed and that developing the skills and talents of young people contributes to strong, vibrant communities. While Kansas City is widely known for being a vibrant center for art, business, tech and medicine, some students in Kansas City face significant challenges every day. Within Kansas City Public Schools, one of the largest school districts in Missouri, City Year Kansas City currently works in six partner schools with 30 AmeriCorps members serving over 4,000 students.

“Through shadowing at one of their partner schools, I have directly seen the positive impact City Year Kansas City is making in the lives of students," said Mike Stromberg, Director of Real Estate Development. “Their support empowers students to thrive in school and beyond, fostering academic success, social-emotional growth and opportunities for Kansas City’s next generation.

Congratulations to City Year Kansas City!