Our Events
Annual Benefit Gala & Auction “Scoring A Victory For Children”
Since 1996, Shadow Buddies – “Scoring a Victory for Children” has proved to be our largest and most successful fundraiser of the year. Proceeds from the evening’s event allow our Foundation to nurture current programs while also providing funds to develop new ones to fit the needs of the kids and seniors we serve worldwide. Each year brings a new and exciting theme to our fall event, so we encourage everyone to come “dressed to impress” for the Gala. Our live and silent auctions, along with the great food and entertainment, are sure to guarantee our guests a memorable evening. Each year the Miles Award is presented to a deserving Individual, Board Member, or Volunteer in our community. The Miles Award that stands for: MAGNIFICENT – INDIVIDUAL - LENDING – EXTRA SMILES and is named after co-founder Miles Postlethwait. We celebrated our 28th Annual Gala in 2023, at the Marriott Hotel in Overland Park, KS. With our hosts comedian David Naster and radio personalities Ponch & Nikki from 99.7 The Point, we raised over $100,000 to help spread “Miles of Smiles”! Make sure to save the date for our 29th Annual Gala which will be held on Thursday, September 19, 2024.
Over the past 28 years, we have raised over 1.4 million dollars for our programs from our Annual Gala
Launched in 2016, the “Shoot for the Kids” clay target event is one of the most thrilling events put on by the Shadow Buddies Foundation. Each year, teams from around the Kansas City metro area come together to raise money for our “Courage Capes — Capes for Kids” program. Our goal is to raise $40,000 to support medically-challenged children battling life-threatening conditions and going through various medical treatments. Our “Courage Capes” provide children with a child size Superhero Cape and mask, and allows them to do play therapy to become the hero they truly are, while battling their medical condition. This is a sell-out event and a great day of food, friends, and fun on the course.
Proceeds from our “Shoot for the Kids” event has allowed over 29,000 children to benefit from our “Courage Capes” and masks program
Shoot for the Kids - A Clay Target Event
Birdies, Bogies & Buddies
Teeing off in 2009, “Birdies, Bogeys and Buddies” Golf Tournament has become one of the most popular tournaments in the Kansas City area. The funds raised from the tournament benefit the Shadow Buddies Foundation Summer Backpack Program that supports medically-challenged children attending specialty camps and summer youth programs through the Armourdale Renewal Association. The event is hosted by local Kansas City favorites and professional athletes such as Tony Gonzalez, Matt Besler, and Ryan Succop. Golfers enjoy a day filled with lunch, cocktails and a silent auction.
18,600 Backpacks have been donated to specialty camps in Kansas City.
Magical Flight to the North Pole
In December, some Christmas magic helped over 50 terminally ill and medically-challenged children receive airline boarding passes with the destination being the North Pole. Accompanied by a parent, these special children boarded an airplane and were greeted by the pilot and his flight crew specially dressed for the occasion. The flight took off and flew around the city for 45 minutes while other family member and countless volunteers waited for the children to land and enter the “North Pole” — a winter wonderland in a separate location of the terminal. They were greeted by professional sports team mascots, choirs, superheros, and princesses. Santa made a grand entrance with his motorcade and Secret Service. Lots of goodies to eat, activities, and excitement for the entire family was provided for this special holiday event. Each child, and their siblings, received a huge bag of toys from Santa and a special Shadow Buddy that had been wrapped with love, and donated from businesses in the community. The North Pole and Holiday Hugs toys that are provided to medically-challenged children were made possible by our wonderful volunteers, staff, board members, and community partners.
We are very grateful for our new partnership with Delta Airlines, who sponsored the 2023 Magical Flight.
Holiday Hugs Program
In October of each year, we kick off our annual “Holiday Hugs Toy Drive” that provides thousands of toys, Shadow Buddies, and dinner to hundreds of Kansas City metro families. The toys are distributed to families, shelters, and other like-minded non-profits that are passionate about helping medically-challenged children and families in need during the holidays. We adopt close to 600 families in our community to provide gift bags of toys and goodies. In 2023 we once again had such an overwhelming response from our Board Members and community businesses, that we were able to donate additional toys to stock the shelves of other agencies in our community. This year we truly sprinkled lots of magic and granted holiday wishes to children all across the Kansas City area.
Over 27,400 families have enjoyed our Holiday Hugs Programs in Kansas City. 1,500 Children with the Fantasy Flight to the North Pole.
Pickleball Tournaments
This is a fun way to raise money for Shadow Buddies and we have had such good results because of the faithful Pickleballers and their dedication to helping with spread the word about Shadow Buddies. We’ve been doing this for 7 years and always fill up our tournaments in record time. To date, we have raised over $18,000 for the Shadow Buddies Foundation programs. The love of the game and the great heart of our followers allow us to reach families and children who are going through tough times. A big thank you to Crystal Ansley and John Ploehn for all their dedicated efforts each year.
1st Annual Mouse Races - KC Exotic Car Club Partnership
It was such an honor for Shadow Buddies to be highlighted in this amazing event and bringing awareness to our different programs that serve children in need. Thanks to the KC Exotic Car Club and countless volunteers, this past November, we had an outdoor event at StoneGate Motorplaza that raised $18,700 to help with our Holiday Hugs program. An evening filled with mouse races, simulator racing, silent auction, food truck, and a great band, a wonderful time was had by all supporting medically challenged children during the holidays.
One Lap of America
We have been honored to be selected as the Charity of Choice for the racing Team of Scott Donaghue and Jay Dee Krull as they compete in One Lap of America. They drive through several states and numerous racetracks, covering over 4,750 “Miles for Smiles”. Pledges of at least 1 penny per mile ($50.00) are made for this amazing event. 100% of all monies pledged go to the Shadow Buddies Foundation.
Over the last 4 years, their efforts have raised over $35,000.