Chapter History
In 1971, a small group of 12 mothers formed a group call the JOMO's of Overland Park, Kansas. The purpose of this mother's organization was to provide a means for the small number of African American children in Overland Park to get together on a regular basis.
On October 28, 1972, the Overland Park, KS Chapter was chartered. At the 20th National Convention in Roanoke, Virginia in July of 1973, the chapter was voted to be an official chapter of Jack and Jill of America, Inc.
The 1st elected officers for the chapter were:
The first year, the Overland Park Chapter had many community service projects. These projects included: A Christmas Party for needy children, donations of warm blankets to the Niles Home for Children, and Saturday tutoring for children in need. The Teens in the chapter, under the guidance of Sarah Tyrus and Dorma Claiborne held a food and clothing drive for The Crossline Program in Kansas City. There were also many social activities during the year which culminated with the Spring Festival Dance.
As more African American families moved into the Johnson County area, it became necessary to change the name from the Overland Park, KS Chapter to the Johnson County, KS Chapter. Along with those changes, came the need to support issues related to African Americans in the entire Johnson County Area.
During the 1980's, the Johnson County Chapter began a major campaign to get the local school districts to adopt Martin Luther King's Birthday as an official school holiday. They were successful in getting this done in all of the districts. The chapter also was awarded two grants from the Nation Organizations which allied them to conduct workshops and seminars covering two area "Strengthening the Black Family" and "Survival Skills in the 90's". These workshops were well attended by many families located in the Johnson County Area.
We continue with community service projects, such as volunteer at Harvesters, providing meals for families at Ronald McDonald House in Kansas City, having a trike a-thon raising money for St. Judes Children's Hospital, and fundraising for the Jack and Jill of America, Inc. Foundation.
PRESIDENT HELEN DUPREE
VICE PRESIDENT MYRNA RILEY
SECRETARY DORMA CLAIBORN
TREASURER OLENE SMITHE
HISTORIAN ALFREDA BROW
PARLIAMENTARIAN PAT JOHNSON
PROGRAM CHAIR JUDY JACKSON
Chapter Programming
Mother's Retreat
Jack & Jill Family Day Picnic
Central Region Mother's Cluster
Age Group Activities
Youth Holiday Party
Adult Sweetheart Gathering
Johnson County MLK Celebration
Jack & Jill Founder's Day Celebration
Black History Program
Father/Son Prayer Breakfast
Mother/Daughter Tea
Black Family Day
High School Senior Brunch
Regional Teen Conference