Growing up in the 1950s, Phyllis Stevens recognized the social inequalities that people of color faced and grew passionate about addressing those issues. Stevens started off as an educator before coming to Swope Health (called Swope Parkway Health Center at the time), where she used her talents and skills for special event fundraising. In 1993, she joined Bernstein-Rein Advertising (where she still works part-time) to impact the community in a different way.
How her career started
Stevens was raised in a modest neighborhood in Kansas City, Missouri, and witnessed how people of color were mistreated. She recalls how some individuals couldn’t ride certain buses and that the Kansas City Star would advertise homes in areas where Black families couldn’t live.
“My values came through my mother, but she never sat me down to say these things aren’t right; I just knew what was happening was wrong, and I wanted to do something about it,” Stevens said. “When I got married in 1962, my husband and I would attend meetings by black-led organizations. I’m still involved with several nonprofits that support the cause of equity.”
Going from a middle school teacher to a stay-at-home-mom, Stevens went back to work in 1974. She taught at Ozanam – a residential treatment facility for children with behavioral and emotional problems – then in the Jewish Community Center of Greater Kansas City’s early childhood department. She eventually left education to work for a friend of hers, Brenda Pelofsky, who ended up serving as Swope Health’s Executive Vice President for 22 years.
“At a dinner party, I learned that Brenda was starting a new State of Missouri initiative integrating individuals with mental health diagnoses into the workforce, and she invited me to work with her,” she said. “Brenda subsequently led Swope Health’s mental health program and fundraising under E. Frank Ellis’ leadership. I joined her in the development department.”
Her time at Swope Health
Stevens became Swope Health’s Associate Director of Development in 1980 and was closely tied to the fundraising efforts for the health center. While there, she earned her Master of Public Administration from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. She created “Trick-or-Treat Village,” which was a Halloween event that also advertised Swope Health inside the Ward Parkway Shopping Center.
“There were around 30 Victorian painted houses that were built by the Carpenters Union and filled with volunteers in costumes who gave out treats and information. That helped Swope Health draw some attention beyond Troost Avenue, which was a big accomplishment,” Stevens said.
Stevens also helped coordinate “roasts” of notable figures in Kansas City, where the public could attend and make playful jokes towards the “roastee” at the fundraising event. It started with a banking executive Gene Periera, and went on to include notable Kansas Citians, including Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II. The fundraising continued to grow in popularity over the years.
“I think my biggest accomplishments at Swope Health was having the good fortune at the Trick-or-Treat Village and the roasts. I got one of the radio stations to do public service announcements – which was a huge deal in the media climate at the time,” she said.
Her next chapter
Stevens’ main responsibility at Swope Health was to raise awareness of the health center to the Kansas City community. After successfully accomplishing that, she reconnected with two of her high school classmates. Herb Koahn and Bob Bernstein, who are successful businessman and Kansas City advocates, wanted her assistance at Bernstein-Rein Advertising as the director of corporate relations.
“Herb called me one day and told me that Bob wanted Bernstein-Rein to better organize their commitment to the community, which has always been a strong value at the agency. Through my 13 years working in urban Kansas City, I understood the nonprofits’ mindset and Bob wanted me to help professionalize what they do,” Stevens said. “I accepted the job and have learned a lot in 30 years.”
Through Bernstein-Rein, Stevens has worked with multiple departments including creative, media, and research to meet the needs of our pro-bono clients. She helped around 100 nonprofits to find ways to assist them. Some notable work that she’s done locally includes her assistance with branding the Kauffman Center’s front letterhead and the support of the Nelson Atkins Museum’s mini golf course. While her duties and hours have changed, she’s been doing special projects there since 2014.
“I semi-retired for a couple of years to help take care of my late husband when he had renal disease,” she said. “After he passed away, Bob called and asked me to come back. He wanted to keep the agency’s promise of reaching out to the community alive.”
Over the years, Stevens has served on several non-profit boards, such as Ronald McDonald House of Kansas City, the Heartland Men’s Chorus, and in the late 1990s, she joined Swope Health’s board of directors. She credits her time at Swope Health for laying the groundwork to allow her to make such an impact to the Kansas City community and other nonprofits.
“Being at Swope Health gave me 13 years of waking up every day, knowing that the work I was doing affected other people’s lives for the better. It was a great stepping stone for my career,” Stevens said.
