Philanthropy Today
Philanthropy Today
Central Kansas Military Community Foundation on the GMCF Community Hour Show Episode - 250
We sat down with Central Kansas Military Community Foundation director Ruth Dupree to unpack how a 2004 grassroots effort grew into a fast, reliable safety net. Ruth shares moving stories, a temporary fence so an autistic child can play safely, emergency help for a new arrival who received no pay due to a system error, and support for parents making repeated medical trips when the Ronald McDonald House is full. The pattern is clear: quick relief, simple process, and deep respect for the realities of military life. With most grants between $500 and $1,000, impact comes from speed and precision, closing the gap exactly where benefits and insurance stop.
CKMCF runs with no paid staff and a volunteer board, so donations go straight to the point of need. We dig into how leadership at Fort Riley streamlines referrals, why a one-page form and supervisor sign-off keep cases moving in 24–48 hours, and how community support from Match Day to a long-running pewter ornament series keeps the mission funded. Ruth’s own military family roots underscore the foundation’s empathy for families facing deployments, holidays apart, and sudden expenses that can upend a tight budget.
If you or someone you know needs help, start with your first-line supervisor to connect with CKMCF quickly. To support the mission, share this episode, donate during Match Day, or spread the word about the ornament fundraiser. Subscribe for more stories of practical generosity, leave a review to boost our reach, and tell us: which moment moved you most? Ruth explains simple steps to request aid, real stories of impact, and how community donations fuel rapid help.
• Purpose of CKMCF and who it serves
• Examples of small grants solving urgent problems
• Process for applying through a first-line supervisor
• Typical needs during pay glitches, moves, and medical travel
• Volunteer-led structure and donation-based funding
• Pewter ornament fundraiser and Match Day support
• Support for families during deployments and holidays
• Where to connect on Facebook as CKMCF
Philanthropy Today is brought to you by the Greater Manhattan Community Foundation. In this episode, we feature a recently broadcast segment of the GMCF Community Hour, as heard on News Radio KMAN. Segment number two of the GMCF Community Hour here on News Radio KMAN. Ruth Depree is our guest, and Ruth has been in here before representing the Central Kansas Military Community Foundation, where she serves as a director. And Ruth, welcome to our show. Good morning. Thank you for having me. Let's talk a bit about the foundation because I want to make sure that the people do understand because we do have an Armed Services Foundation, Armed Forces Foundation at the Community Foundation, and you are different. Correct. So let's talk about what your uh what your organization does.
SPEAKER_00:So our organization was um established in 2004 when some people from the community, Junction City, Manhattan, and Fort Riley, determined there was a need to uh give financial assistance to soldiers, veterans, and their families when sometimes they encounter an emergency that can't be covered through traditional avenues.
SPEAKER_01:Okay. And what are some of those services that you help help sue people through?
SPEAKER_00:Um most recently we had a service member who had an autistic child, and they asked to have a fence put up in their backyard so that the child could go out by himself without the parents constantly monitoring him. Um, and he that child then would be safe with a fence. So we gave a grant to have that fence installed and for one year's rental of that fence.
SPEAKER_01:I I would suppose that you have a number of stories that you can share about different things that uh different people that you have helped and with a multitude really of different um different ways of helping.
SPEAKER_00:Yes, absolutely. So especially right now, um even though soldiers are being paid this this month, we're not sure what's gonna happen. We recently had a soldier come to the area and there was a glitch in the system, and she was not in the military system, and so she could not receive any pay at all. So we were able to give her a grant to help her with uh immediate financial needs. Um deposits on different things, um, gas. She uh was staying in a hotel for three weeks before housing became available for her. So we were able to help with that as well.
SPEAKER_01:At her cost? Yes. Oh goodness. Yes. Yeah. How many do you have an idea how many people you've helped over the years?
SPEAKER_00:Oh my gosh.
SPEAKER_01:That's a loaded question, isn't it?
SPEAKER_00:It is, because we've been around for 20 years. So um I would say a few hundred. I know that we have given out about$35,000 in grants, and most of our grants are not huge. They're about$500 to maybe$1,000. So that's quite a quite a few people that we've been able to help.
SPEAKER_01:But it's pretty impactful when you need it.
SPEAKER_00:Yes, absolutely. Um, the majority of the people that come to us asking for assistance are very young soldiers with family members. Um, a lot of times we have soldiers who have an infant that might have a medical condition and they have to go to either Kansas City or Topeka. We are able to help with their expenses driving back and forth, extra meals that they need to buy. And sometimes they're not able to get into the Ronald McDonald house, so then they also have hotel expenses.
SPEAKER_01:What are some of the processes that are involved in having a soldier or a soldier's family request some request aid from you?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah. We try to make it as simple as possible. Most of the leadership at Fort Riley knows about us. Um we have one simple form where the soldier puts his personal information, name, address, how many family members he has, um, what the request is for, if he's maybe gone to other uh agencies asking for help, and then his immediate supervisor signs off on that saying, yes, I support this request. We get it. Within 24 to 48 hours, we are able to provide uh money to that soldier then.
SPEAKER_01:It's got to be rewarding to be able to help them in their time of need.
SPEAKER_00:So rewarding, so rewarding. Um, even though I know it's a small amount,$500 to$1,000, that can help when you're really strepping.
SPEAKER_01:Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_00:And so, yes, the stories that we have, and there's so many of them, it's beyond rewarding.
SPEAKER_01:What is the foundation's staffing, volunteers, et cetera, composed of?
SPEAKER_00:We have absolutely no paid staff. We have a board of directors.
SPEAKER_01:You're doing this out of the kindness of your heart.
SPEAKER_00:Yes, we are. We have a board of about 12 to 15 people. Um, we are all volunteers. We um uh I lost my train of thing.
SPEAKER_01:That's all right. Those things happen.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah. So so we meet um about every other month. We look at the cases that have been brought before us asking for financial assistance, and we um operate completely based on donations. We have no regular funding. So when we do the match day for the Armed Services Um Community Foundation, it is a wonderful help to us. We also um each year commission a pewter Christmas ornament that has some historical significance to either Fort Riley or the First Infantry Division, and for a small donation, you can receive one of those ornaments. We now have 16 in our series. Goodness. Yes.
SPEAKER_01:Do you have all of them still at your uh availability? Yes, yes. Yes. You know, that's a pretty good timing thing. Where can we find those?
SPEAKER_00:Um, we will be at the match day um event, and we will have those ornaments with us on the 11th of November.
SPEAKER_01:And that's the Armed Services Foundation, so you'll be helping them out. And so there will be a table um, I suppose, out where the the parade, the official parade lookout is there, right in front of Manhattan City Hall.
SPEAKER_00:I believe so.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. So okay, great. I know that uh, you know, the there's a lot of neat things that um you know the the Armed Services Foundation is obviously involved in. And they have other organizations like yours that they assist. And so that is a key factor in trying to get some people to help so that you can help those in need.
SPEAKER_00:Absolutely.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. What's the favorite thing that you like about what you do? Loaded question, I know.
SPEAKER_00:That it's rewarding to be able to help someone who has a need, a financial need, um, that they didn't expect. I mean, who who expects emergencies, um, and that we are able to help in in almost all instances when we're asked for assistance.
SPEAKER_01:What inspired you to get involved?
SPEAKER_00:Because I had seen some of the things that this organization was doing. Um, and I wanted to be a part of that, to be be a part of something that is bigger than myself that helps others.
SPEAKER_01:Aaron Powell Do you have a military background in your family's history?
SPEAKER_00:I do. I have a huge military background. My dad was in the army, my brother, my sister, my husband, my daughter, my son. Uh they've all been in the military.
SPEAKER_01:Is there anybody in your family that has not been just one. Just one. You. No, that's not to discount, you know, the fact that uh, you know, uh uh a spouse is not significant in that regard.
SPEAKER_00:Thank you.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. Yeah. That's uh, you know, and I know that there's just uh, you know, we have soldiers that are, you know, in the process of of going overseas and and serving wherever and and the strain that that puts on families. And and I would suppose, especially during the holidays, that that probably, you know, that strain has probably increased a bit.
SPEAKER_00:Yes, it is. Um and we don't just help soldiers, we also help veterans, family members. So if a soldier is deployed and a family member encounters a an emergency of some kind that requires financial assistance, we are um very happy to help. We make sure that all the rear detachment people have our name and our number, and um we're we're there to help.
SPEAKER_01:Mm-hmm. It sounds like you make that process as easy as possible in order for some of these people to receive those grants. Well, what's the first step for them to take?
SPEAKER_00:The first step is to go to their immediate for first line supervisor and um let them know that they they have a need. And like I said, most of the leadership at Fort Riley, from first sergeants on up, um, even put some platoon sergeants are aware of who we are and what we do, and so they then uh get in touch with us.
SPEAKER_01:Okay. Well, we'll hopefully uh get that word shared here live or through the podcast and and uh try to communicate that with everybody. Anything else you'd like to add, Ruth?
SPEAKER_00:No, thank you for having us here and letting us tell our story.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, well, thank you for sharing. Thanks for the work that you're doing. It uh takes a person with a special heart to to give that amount of time to to a cause such as yours. So, you know, and I think it uh, you know, we uh look at uh American Pride from a lot of different respects. And American Pride also means helping out those who are serving in their time of need. So Ruth, it's a delight to have you in again. Good to see you. Good luck with the rest of your efforts this year.
SPEAKER_00:Thank you very much. Appreciate it.
SPEAKER_01:Ruth Dupree is the executive director of uh the Central Kansas Military Community Foundation. Do you have a website?
SPEAKER_00:No, we don't.
SPEAKER_01:Facebook page? Yes. Okay.
SPEAKER_00:Yes, it's just Central Kansas Military Community Foundation or the letters CKMCF.
SPEAKER_01:CKMCF. Yes. Okay. Sounds good. Glad to be able to share that. Rick Hernandez will be stepping in next. He is with the Manhattan Free Clinic. We got a lot of things to share with uh the work that's being done there. And they have a special event coming up, and uh, we'll talk about more of that when we return. The GMCF community hours heard every Monday morning at 10 here on News Radio KMAN. You can always find out more about the work that we do here at the foundation at our website, which is mcfks.org.