Makeda C. Peterson is a Rockhurst University Alumni (c/o 2008) and has been the acting Program Director of JuneteenthKC since 2012.

 

JuneteenthKC, a 501c3 organization, spearheads the annual development of the City of Kansas City's official Juneteenth celebration activities in addition to providing community programming that promotes healthy lifestyles and socialization within the urban core 365 days a year.

 

JuneteenthKC has successfully hosted "Juneteenth" celebration activities in the heart of the 18th & Vine Historic Jazz District since 2012 and now welcomes over 10,000 visitors annually to celebrate African American Pride culture proudly sponsored by the State of Missouri Department of Travel and Tourism, The State of Missouri Minority Health and Senior Services Department, Evergy, Hallmark, T-Mobile, Arvest Bank, Healthy Blue Missouri Home State Health, Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Kansas City, Truman Medical Center, and community partners from across the Greater Kansas City area!

 

Makeda has been driven since childhood to find ways to serve communities in need and provide positive social engagements to counteract adverse childhood experiences within underserved populations. Motivated by the work of her parents, the late Barbara Lousie Peterson and Horace Peterson III, founder of the Black Archives of Mid-America Incorporated, Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, and the American Jazz Museum, Makeda has continued to make significant impacts in Kansas City providing direct support to thousands of families across the Midwest.

 

Due to Makeda's dedication to preserving the legacy of her family and African American culture in Kansas City, JuneteenthKC has received proclamations from the City of Kansas City, Missouri in 2012, 2016, and 2019, for leading the coordination of Kansas City's official Juneteenth celebration activities and has been highlighted as a recognized project by the State of Missouri Historical Society Bicentennial celebration in 2021. JuneteenthKC in 2021 also assisted the City of Kansas City, Missouri City Council by acting as an agency sponsor to enact Ordinance # 210431 to add Juneteenth as a city employee paid holiday for the City of Kansas City.