An organization which stays stagnant and resists change is not assured of perpetuity. Such is the fate sidestepped by the Philippine Nurses’ Association of Greater Kansas City (PNAGKC). Its inception as an organization, which started in 1991, was directly influenced by Mrs. Remedios Solarte from Michigan when a group of Filipino nurses from Kansas City attended a national event of the same year. This was also brought about by the migration of qualified Filipino nurses into the Greater Kansas City area from as long as the 1970’s to the present.

The PNAGKC has evolved from a means of giving the Filipino nurses of the Greater Kansas City Area a chance to get together into a chance for these nurses to unite and give back to the local community where they have claimed their second homes.

Members reside on both sides of the state line of the states of Missouri and Kansas. Since then, the association has aligned itself and worked with several Kansas City based groups such as the National Red Cross, Kansas City Public Television, the Philippine Medical Mission Foundation, Kansas City Free Health Clinic, Kansas City World Outreach Lion’s Club, the Rotary Club, the Filipino Association of Greater Kansas and the like. The association’s community services projects include yearly medical missions to different district hospitals in the Philippines and other countries.

 It also has evolved into a financially strong organization owing its strength to numerous year round fundraising fellowship events and it’s not for profit philosophy as officially classified by the Internal Revenue Service. However, its greatest assets are its members and the individual contribution of time and talent to various projects undertaken with enthusiasm. To date, the group has hosted the yearly Nurses’ Ball without falter bringing members and guests alike an evening to unwind , celebrate and laugh in a manner only the way Kansas City Filipino nurses can offer. Other family oriented events such as the Summer Family Camping and picnic and Halloween parties bring its members together annually.

As part of its quest for vitality, viability, visibility, stability and longevity, the PNAGKC in 1992 elected to be part of an organization of nurses with a national scope, the Philippine Nurses Association of America, Inc. They manage to elect national officers from their own local membership roster on a continuous basis. Over the years, several national events have been held successfully in Kansas City including a North Central Regional Summit attended by delegates from Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, Indiana and Greater St. Louis, MO. In 2005, the PNAGKC took on its biggest project by hosting the 26^th PNAA National Convention of over 500 delegates at the Hyatt Regency Hotel during a 4 day long convention offering educational, cultural and social events to bring the Filipino Nurses from across the nation together. On April 25, 26, 27, 2008 PNAGKC will host the next North Central Regional Conference at the Westin Crowne Center Hotel in Kansas City. For more information, call Beth Rosas, 2006-2008 PNAGKC President or log on www.pnagkc.org.

The members pride itself offering their nursing skills without getting the benefit of pay  by participating in local health fairs, manning first aid booths at various sporting events, offering CPR classes and participating in medical missions to the Philippines and other countries.

The organization’s altruism does not stop there. Throughout the years, its coffers has benefited  other projects  such as Gawad Kalinga and now Gawad Kalusugan, with its vision of an alternative solution to the blatant problem of poverty not just in the Philippines but in the world, numerous projects requiring funding assistance with typhoon & hurricane relief efforts and local crisis intervention within its membership & the Filipino-American community as a whole.

In theory, an organization’s strength may be measured in its accomplishments and physical assets alone. However, the PNAGKC finds its treasure most from its most vital asset, the members and movers who generate ideas and get them in motion. As Filipinos, we manifest our abilities to stand out and excel in whatever we do by taking pride in the hard working roots of our nationality.

As nurses, the ability to care is manifested by the ability to translate our talents, time and efforts to benefit humanity as a whole.

The association  also draws its strength from its educational endeavors such as the yearly educational CEU offerings for local area nurses Filipinos and non-Filipinos alike.  Scholarships have also been made available in the KC area as well as in the Philippines as a means for its members to give back to its roots as Filipinos and nurses.