Episode 39: Boots, Bingo and Blood Cancer Awareness

This week on So THIS Happened, we’re recording live from Home2 Suites in Delano with the incredible Jamie Seipel, Director of Sales for Home2 Suites Delano and 2026 Visionary of the Year candidate for Blood Cancer United.

What starts as a conversation about fundraising quickly becomes something much deeper—about saying yes before you feel ready, stepping into something bigger than yourself, and discovering just how powerful community can be when it rallies around a cause.

For Jen, this episode is especially meaningful—a full-circle moment reflecting on her own candidacy back in 2016… and what it looks like to now sit across from someone stepping into that same journey.

And yes… we also talk about:
Bitchy Bingo
Adult Prom (with DJ Panda 💃)
A dunk tank situation that feels mildly unhinged (in the best way)

💃 In This Episode, We Cover:
Jamie’s journey from Visit Wichita to Home2 Suites Delano
What drew her to Blood Cancer United—and why she said yes
The emotional moment it became real
The unexpected confidence that comes from asking for support
The power of community (and Wichita showing UP)
Behind-the-scenes of planning multiple fundraising events
How this experience is already changing her
Why this campaign is about so much more than fundraising

🎲 This or That: Fundraising Edition
We kick things off with a themed round of This or That, including:
Silent auction vs. live auction chaos
Bingo night vs. trivia night
Boots & Buckles vs. Adult Prom
Plan the event vs. show up and enjoy
Spoiler: strong opinions were formed… and defended 😄

🎉 Jamie’s Event Lineup (aka The Tour 👏)
Jamie is not playing small—she’s bringing the entire city along for the ride.
Here’s what’s coming up:
⚾ Baseball Game (April 3)
 Featuring a powerful first pitch moment from Honor Hero Zach
🎱 Bitchy Bingo (April 9)
 A little sass, a lot of fun
🤠 Boots & Buckles @ WAVE (April 19)
 Country vibes, live music, and big energy
🏃‍♀️ Run for Blood Cancer (April 25)
 5K + 1-mile fun run at Exploration Place
🧠 Wichita-Themed Trivia Night (April 30)
 Come for the fun, stay for the unexpected facts
🍷 Adult Prom @ The Boathouse (May 14)
 90s/2000s theme + DJ Panda = absolute chaos (the good kind)
💦 Poker Run + Dunk Tank (May)
 Dive bar crawl meets “who are we dunking today?” energy

❤️ Why This Matters
Blood Cancer United supports patients and families right here in Wichita—and every dollar raised stays local.
Last year alone:
💰 $264,000 raised by Visionary candidates
💰 Over $500,000 given back to local families
This isn’t just about events.
 It’s about impact, advocacy, and showing up when it matters most.

🙌 How You Can Get Involved
Attend an event
Donate directly to Jamie’s campaign
Share with your network
Show up however you can
Because every little bit truly does count.

🥂 Favorite Moment
“I thought people liked me… but would they actually show up for me?”
 Turns out… they would. And they did.

✨ Closing Thoughts
This episode is a reminder that sometimes the most powerful thing you can do…
 is say yes before you feel ready.
Because you never know what kind of impact is waiting on the other side.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

All right, let's go. Cheers! So this happened. Episode 39. I'm Jen. I'm Rachel. I'm Jen. And she's Jamie. Um, yeah, this is so we're here at um Home2 Suites in the Delano district with Jamie. And we are, gosh, we have such a big uh a big agenda to go through today. She's got a lot going on. Yeah. So we have a lot to dive into, but first I definitely want to make sure that we thank Home2 Suites and you, Jamie, for allowing us into the space and into your weekend time this weekend. Thanks so much. We're so excited to have you. Yes. We have a lot to get through today. So Jamie is a visionary um in Blood Cancer United's.

SPEAKER_02 0:47

What are they calling the So it used to be Leukemia and Lymptoma Society? They just transferred over to Blood Cancer United. Yes. But also it used to be the visionary man and woman of the year. Yes. But now it's just one singular visionary of the year.

SPEAKER_00 1:02

Visionary of the year. So what we are doing is we are bringing awareness to Jamie's campaign and of course the overall campaign as well, because this is an excellent cause supporting blood cancers and blood cancer research and awareness. And it's fun because in 2016, I was a candidate back when it was Man Woman of the Year. Yeah. I was a woman of the year candidate, actually, Tori Detridge, who does whine about cancer. She was she was the winner that year. But I took home the community engagement award, which I don't know if that was the only year they had that one or what, but I was very surprised to get that. Oh, it's I love it. That's awesome. I keep my trophies at my desk at work. Oh yeah, like it's a thing that you're never gonna forget. This is going to be a lifetime memory for you, I guarantee you. And it's definitely a legacy that you're gonna want to be part of.

SPEAKER_02 1:51

So I'm I'm actually so excited about that and that you mentioned that because our kids, Kate, my boyfriend and I, we have five boys, and our oldest was like, Oh, I can't wait till I'm a candidate. And I was like, Well, you have big dogs. Yeah, they have the teens. That's right. It was like, so you got mom and dad who did it too. That's like cool.

SPEAKER_00 2:12

So, like, what if we had like a whole family of oh I love that idea so much. Oh my gosh, that's fantastic. So, we're gonna be talking all about the events that Jamie has coming up, what it means to the Wichita area, what it means to the visionary community, and all that kind of stuff. It's and and yeah, events that she has coming up because you have them up all your list is long, girl. It's good.

SPEAKER_02 2:39

And they told me when I first started, they're like, let's focus on corporate sponsorship so you're not doing as many events. And I was like, but like I love events, I do. And now that like I've got them all lined out, I'm like, oh no. Oh no.

SPEAKER_01 2:51

Yes, yeah, take your vitamins.

SPEAKER_00 2:54

Take your oh my god, the whole time, take your vitamins and stay hydrated. Yeah. And we're gonna be letting our listeners know how they can get involved and and help out or attend events or you know, things like that. We'll be going through that. So extra support from our lovely community, we hope. Do it. You won't regret it. Yeah, and then we'll we're gonna dive into the lineup of events. But first, we have to start with our lovely game of this or that. This or that. Yeah, fundraising events community energy edition. So we got all that rolling today. So the way this works is I will give a prompt, and it'll be like this thing or that thing. And we'll start with you, and you'll give your answer, a brief explanation why. Then Rachel will go and then I'll go, and then I'll pick another prompt, and then we'll just go around three, four, or five times, kind of depending on how quickly we go through them. So, are you ready? Yeah, so ready. Okay, the first one is silent auction or live auction chaos. I love a live auction chaos.

SPEAKER_02 3:58

If you've never heard like Ron Max said, just do a live auction. He's so funny, but his energy is so good. It I love it. Yeah, it's it's just so exciting. It is so exciting. I also grew up in like a very rural area. So I remember going to like cattle live. Oh, yeah. Oh my gosh, that's not another one. I know, and those people are insane. So very serious. So whenever I get to see one in like a classy setting, I'm like, well, this is different, but I like it.

SPEAKER_01 4:30

Yeah. I probably say that one as well, like a loud one. Yeah, I don't even know how a silent one works. Like you just put in a bid, like out of like when they have gift baskets, and you just like put down a number. And a sheet of paper, yeah. I want people to fight in front of me.

SPEAKER_00 4:48

Yeah, just so I'm not gonna Tim and I have a strategy.

SPEAKER_01 4:54

What I find interesting is the people that you know put on the option, the rattling, what do you call that? There's a name for it. The turn, there's a term for that one of the air. Like, there's actually schooling that people go to for that. But it's a whole course that you have to take to get like certified. Certified. Like, yeah, you can't just have anyone do it. I mean, you could, I guess, but it would not be the same.

SPEAKER_00 5:16

Your brain just rattling off like that. Can you imagine? Yeah, I love it.

SPEAKER_01 5:19

Yeah, so I think that like there's part of it was like it stresses me out. Like I would like be afraid, I'd like to sneeze and they'd be like, you won it! And I'm like, no, one million dollars. Have fun with that one. But it reminds me of white chicks when like they're like boxing off the face, you know, and then give it a new song that goes from like steps on men's feet and like tapping their butt and they go, whoa, you know, raise their hand. But I think that I think that's more exciting and fun to watch. And I just love like listening to that. I don't I can't talk that fast enough to talk very fast.

SPEAKER_00 5:52

Yeah, I love the energy of that. I'm gonna go a different way though. I love the sneakiness of the okay, let's get this started. I love a silent auction. So we have a habit of waiting till the very end of the night. Sweeping in and just putting our name down really fast before they're collected. So I mean, a lot of the times in that point of the evening, people are so drunk they've forgotten. Yeah. I'm one of those people. So this is Sophie, just like lock in and remember this is the time, like set a time or whatever. Like, okay, this is ours. We're doing this. This is it. We got this. Doesn't always happen, but a lot of the times it does. Because so is it whoever puts down the most money? Yes. Well, yeah, yeah. Yeah. Basically the last one on the list because you gotta you gotta keep it. But you can see what everyone else is. So yeah. Do you want to go up by$50 or do you want to go up by$250? Oh my god. That's you! You're right.

SPEAKER_02 6:50

I could see how that would be a little fun. The competitive nature of it is nice.

SPEAKER_00 6:55

Yeah. Well, and the thing about the live auction thing is like I can't keep like, I'm like, what is happening? It's too distracting for me. It's a lot.

SPEAKER_01 7:04

Well, see, I wouldn't be involved in any auction because I can't spend money on anything. I got too frugal right now. But uh, but just as far as from a you know spectator perspective, I would rather like the loud one. But if I was actually trying to win something, I would probably get a signal auction on. But I'm also like, is it really winning anything if you spend a bunch of money? Hell yeah, this goes towards a good cause, everybody.

SPEAKER_00 7:26

You got the cause and then you got the thing that you want. And a lot of times, some of those gift baskets are crazy. Yeah. We're talking tickets to things that you wouldn't normally get tickets to. Sometimes they're like wine bundles or like chiefs' bundles. Uh, I don't know.

SPEAKER_02 7:41

There's like so many different things that you can do, which are lots of bundles that I'm putting together.

SPEAKER_00 7:45

Yeah, oh. So you gotta love that. Yeah, very good. I had a wine bundle too. My mom painted, like so my mom's an artist. She painted like hand painted, but like with vines and grapes and valleys and this wooden chair. It's really cute. And then my my other friend Corey's mom made this mosaic that like it's a garden stone kind of thing. It's got a wine glass, like it's my front garden, yeah. So it just like it's yeah, whole that's a really cool wine bundle. It was it was really neat. Like the community just it's amazing how the community comes together, and I know we're gonna get more into that. So I'm really excited. We'll go back to the game. Oh, yeah, game. But we're getting excited, so that's a good thing. Bingo night or trivia night?

SPEAKER_02 8:30

Oh, that's tough because I'm actually hosting one of each of those. I uh grew up playing bingo with my grandma and my mom. So I'm always I'm probably always gonna pick a bingo night. Yeah. My mom actually takes my oldest stepson to play bingo once a week now. So that's like before, like, and then once a month, we'll as a family go play bingo. So I'm always gonna pick bingo. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 8:54

Yeah. That's a tough one for me too, because for trivia nights, we go to the gnome for trivia off Thursday. But I'm mostly there for moral support, maybe, and maybe with some of the more association ones. But I love the vibe and energy of it all. Yeah. But I don't do bingo as much, so I think I want to pick bingo because I really liked going to the bingo hall. It's just a new environment that I haven't been to in a while. And I love seeing all the you know, older ladies with their like a whole scrapbook bag with all their daubers and leggings with me. They'll take a whole table. Yeah. Yeah. Oh my gosh. I yelled, I was just talking to someone about this. I yelled bingo, right? Because I got a bingo, just a normal straight bingo. It's like yelling bomb in an airport. Yeah. Like it was like, it's like, yeah, they are in check. It wasn't a bingo because I guess they were going after a different pattern. I didn't realize you have to look at the pattern they have, like, lit up on the show. They were, they were, they were pissed. They like you stopped for this. Like, and they were. I bet they would have been even more mad if I actually won though, because this newbie with the one card, because I only got like one or two sheets, you know. And not like a everybody else has like a whole table of sheets. Like you go up there to pick the packages, and I'm like, how do I what do I want? Like, I don't know. I don't know. Normal bingo cards. Like, so yeah, that's my experience. But they had really good chicken strips and fries at a good price, too. Sounds like a yeah, yeah. I think it was, I don't know which one it was, but I'm gonna say it's the one on like Broadway or Seneca or something like that.

SPEAKER_02 10:28

We go to the bingo casino at Central and West.

SPEAKER_01 10:31

Central and West, okay.

SPEAKER_00 10:33

So that is something that I've never done before. Oh, Jack, I'm gonna have to take it to blame serious, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 10:39

We also got girls' night, yeah. Oh my gosh.

SPEAKER_00 10:42

Or event night, what I don't know, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 10:44

When is your event? Well, uh, it's actually it's a bitchy bingo. So yes, it's a bitchy bingo.

SPEAKER_00 10:50

It's a little bit different than bingo hall bags. Bitchy bingo is a lot of fun. I do know that. So, yes, I love bitchy bingo, but I've never I've never done so sad. I've never done the the bingo hall thing. And I've played bingo at work, I've played bingo like in other scenarios and stuff, but I do really love a trivia night. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 11:11

I just I say you're really good at the music questions and stuff too, though. Like, I just I can't think of names associated with things. I'm gonna word association ones, but other than that, like I just blank out, like, you know, it's like it's like when someone says in an interview, so tell me about yourself.

SPEAKER_00 11:27

It's like what do you want to have?

SPEAKER_02 11:31

Two college degrees. I've double majored in like marketing and management. And I get to trivia night, I'm just like idiot. Like I don't remember anything, I don't know how to live.

SPEAKER_00 11:42

It's just all useless information. Like, uh I don't have space to hold it stored in our. Yeah, so I'm I'm saying trivia night. Okay, boots and buckles or adult prong. Ooh, boots and buckles.

SPEAKER_02 11:58

Kind of like a Western theme. Okay, just think for a party or something. Yes, which I love that you pitched that because that is two of my events, and I'm pretty excited for both of them. Because oh yeah, I can't pick. Tell us what you like about it.

SPEAKER_00 12:14

She says bugs a lot, so I do.

SPEAKER_02 12:16

So Boots and Buckles is gonna be again, like I grew up in a very rural part of Kansas, which is Eureka. Oh, okay. Okay. Um, and we loved everything country. I grew up just playing and like we we would all just go hang out on a dirt rope. Yeah. Like, and I love that kind of music, and we we just have a great time listening to it. Like it's so relatable. Yeah. However, the prom theme that I have taken for our upcoming event is 90s and 2000s promotion. It sounds amazing. So I there used to be this club up in Kansas City, it is closed now, but they would play late 80s, 90s, and 2000s throwbacks. Oh, yeah. And I know it's I'm I'm 38 now, and I started going there when I was 30. And there was it was just always it reminded me of back when we were 18, 19, 20, uh-huh going to like Graham Central Station when they had teen night. I would just wake up the next morning and I'm so sore because their song was my song.

SPEAKER_01 13:21

I love that. It's the best workout when you're dancing because you didn't realize it's workout. No, you're right.

SPEAKER_02 13:24

But I woke up the next morning so sore. So I'm hoping that everybody that comes out for the 90s and 2000s themed prom goes like wakes up sore the next morning because I just dance so much fun. Yeah, I love that.

SPEAKER_01 13:36

Yeah, yeah. I I think I would probably prefer the prom theme. I never went to prom. And so I think that would be awesome. Yeah. Plus, plus, I love the the time frame you set too. So especially if it's that time yeah, those are my favorite throwbacks. How can you go wrong with this? You just really can't. So I definitely would probably prefer that one. You know, I've spent a lot of time on my family's farm and stuff. So I get country, but I just I don't, I just don't have a lot of country in my playlist. And honestly, I hate to say this and admit this as a Kansan girl, but I don't even, I've never owned a pair of cowgirl boots.

SPEAKER_02 14:13

I love I also have never eaten. Don't worry. Well, except for the pink shiny ones that I'm gonna wear at fix about tassels on them, so it's like rhinestone canvas.

SPEAKER_01 14:23

I did back in the day got the big sparkly, you know, with the Biduel belts and stuff, you know. What brand was it? I don't even know, but there was a big chunky belt. I don't know, I bought that out because I don't know. Oh no, I think it even had like leopard print or something behind it and was like had like lined with beaded string and then had but seal? Probably sounds about right. So I think that I remember probably was on my lantas.

SPEAKER_00 14:49

Oh, I haven't even wow, is that place even a thing? No, no, yeah, no, it is not. I never thought of that in forever. I think now it's just to something different. Wow. What about okay? So I grew up in Oklahoma. Oh, yeah. Um, and the here's the thing. The last time I wore my so I did have a cowboy hat and my boots. I need a picture. Yeah, these are good ones. Oh the last time this happened was I believe it was 2012. And I was at a cowboys versus Vikings football game down in Dallas at the the new, so back then it was the new stadium, Mr. Jones' stadium, and I drank a lot, like a lot of wine before the game. Also, I was there on behalf of Vikings. So I was wearing a Vikings jersey with my cowgirl hat and cowboy boots. That's confusing. I know. Were you having an identity crisis? No, I was really fucking with Alice fans. Well, it's easy to do. So much fun for me as a Chiefs fan. But I was there, yes, rebelliously as a Vikings fan that day in my cowboys garb. It was wonderful until my ex-husband bought me this ginormous margarita. I'd already had a bottle of skinny ones, like the yard ones tall one. Yeah. I didn't make it past the like second quarter. No. I'm terrible. That's a football lover. That's terrible. I don't remember the game at all. But the photos are fire. Oh my god. I'll have to dig those suckers out. So we're going belts and buffalo. No. All that to say, all that to say, I would actually I I love the adult prom. I like I've done it with Walnut River brewing before. Absolute blast. Um, I always I love a good theme, but I I really love the 90s 2000 theme so much. So I would do adult prom any day.

SPEAKER_01 16:56

I think so. I think even with boots and buckles, everybody that does boots and buckles will still enjoy the adult prom.

SPEAKER_00 17:01

You know, and I have so third. And vice versa.

SPEAKER_01 17:04

Yeah, and yeah, I love a good theme. Yeah, yeah, you should come to both. Exactly. We will definitely be putting them all in my calendar.

SPEAKER_00 17:13

Something for everyone, that's for sure. Okay, now here's the here's this will be the last one. Would you rather plan the event or just show up and enjoy? Plan it because I'm a control freak.

SPEAKER_02 17:26

Easy. Straight. I want to drive. Plan it. I wanna make it. I would love to watch everybody else have fun. If I'm seeing other people have fun, I'm having a great day. Yeah. Like that's instant success. I want to plan it.

SPEAKER_01 17:39

Yes. I also feel like I can it kind of can be a play control freak. Like if it's at my house, that just stresses me out because I'm like, I want to make sure everyone's having fun. And like, do you need any water? Do you need any water? Do you need drink? Do you need anything? So then I'm just like, I'm like a helicopter person. Yeah. So I think I'd rather just show up and enjoy at this point, you know. But I do appreciate, I do love having power of controlling an event or like planning it and then see, like you said, having watching everybody have so much fun and like talk about it later and create those hopes of memories. And it's my I mean, I want to go show up and have a good time and be able to just relax, not worry about any of that and stuff. But also I'm definitely willing to like lend a helping hand and like I'm like I'm like the one that goes to a party and is picking up everyone's cups. Yeah, or like that's the nature of the like I'm the person at a restaurant that stacks the plates for the leader. Like I can't, like I have like the OCD or whatever you want to call it. Just kind of just kindness, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 18:40

Exactly. You have kindness for me. I just innately I think it's in me to be the planner. Um my gosh, I've been planning events like it's not even my profession, but it's been something I've done on the side for forever, like a decade, because I've been doing it for Digital Witch Tow since 2015. Um, and I just I love it and we love hosting in our house so much. Um when I go to other events, it's it's also like I I I feel I mean, I like it. I like the ease of it, but I'm also like, okay, so when is what when what are we doing and why are people doing this? And what are like I just like it's more work for me mentally to show up and try to enjoy than when I know when everything's gonna happen. So maybe it's a little bit of a control thing for me.

SPEAKER_01 19:29

It absolutely is.

unknown 19:30

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 19:30

But I will say, like, for you with digital shop, if I were part of a team planning something, that would be so much fun. Oh, such a blast. I think that's planning. But yeah, if it's just solely me planning it, I'm like, you know, which I guess takes away from the control of it, but not really because you have like a good team behind you. Yeah, yeah. Yeah. So I think I think that would be more fun. Be like, you cover this portion, I'll cover this portion. But I think that's fun and collaborative. Yes. So but then also a control freak, and then you want to.

SPEAKER_02 19:58

I know you want to micromanage. Like, I don't think I want to micromanage other people, but there's also can you fill me in on what you're planning?

SPEAKER_00 20:05

Just so I can just want to know what to expect. Like, is there an agenda? Can I oh I love an agenda if I'm a guest? Yeah, like us going to this gala, like I've seen the agenda. I'm like, oh, okay, so I know what to expect. Yeah, what time and yeah. But when you're like going to somebody else's house and there is like you're it's like a free there's a frequently there's no agenda, and you're like, what do I do? What do I do? Like, I feel more out of the way than like because I don't know what to do.

SPEAKER_01 20:29

I guess that's a tough one for me, too. Yeah, probably just I really haven't put on a whole lot of events, so yeah. We'll get you, we'll get you going.

SPEAKER_00 20:38

Maybe we'll maybe in one year we'll make you a just the guest. Oh, maybe you'll be a visionary visionary passing along the legacy to my best friend. We shall see. I think that would be fun. So let's dive into Jamie. Okay. So tell us like just a little bit about yourself.

SPEAKER_02 20:56

So I I've lived, I feel like I don't know, 100 lives. So I'm just gonna start within the past like two years. Great. So I used to work at Visit Witch Talk. Yes, that's how we know each other. Yes, yes. Yeah, you put on a uh a seminar about why and how to use it ethically, which I love, yes, by the way. And I use that daily. But and I worked in convention sales and I absolutely loved everything about Visit Witch Talk. Yes, I really did. It was very sad when I left and because I had this new job at uh with TGC at home too as the director of sales, I got presented it on the that's amazing. I was like, Do you not? Right. I networked my way into this new job, and I'm just so lucky to be here, like having a great time, and then I met so many people, which is then how I networked my way into the visionary 2026. Congrats Yeah, which I will uh jump into because edit and it

SPEAKER_01 22:00

I actually have to pee to get refilled.

SPEAKER_02 22:03

Do you want me to just jump into my why? Or do you want me to keep talking about these? Where is the restroom in out there? Just walk straight out and it's to the left on the other side of that wall. Thank you.

SPEAKER_01 22:15

Do you guys see anything going out here? Nope. Yeah, I'll eat this.

SPEAKER_00 22:18

So after you finish talking about like your background. Yeah, your background. Then we're kind of we're gonna dive into um those things. Like what drew you in, why you said yes, excitement, how are you feeling like so? We'll dive in. I'll prompt that. Okay, cool.

SPEAKER_02 22:34

Let's go back to like, do you want me to say the visit Wichita stuff again? No. Or it's not good.

SPEAKER_00 22:39

Um no, I'm just we might just like I'm if you're are you done? Did you feel like you're gonna do that? Yeah, no, I mean that's okay. Then I'll just I'll just pick up with what I was gonna do next, and then we'll be good to go. Sorry, I like freaked out. I was like, that's uh that's exactly why we have that that edit edit edit prompt because yeah, it happens. Yeah, you saw me at the beginning. Yeah, what am I even doing here? I don't know, I should go home. I'm really hoping the wind dies down.

SPEAKER_02 23:07

Me too. I've been talking about doing a podcast with my friend I just went and saw her last night at Brickyard. Her name's Jordan Minnesota. That makes sense for that. She and Mark. But she and I, like both of our husbands passed away due to suicide. She's it's and she and so like we both have because like they already had like four kids. I had two, and then my daughter ended up passing away. So like I then had the one. And she was like, should we start like a podcast about like brief after suicide? Yeah, and I was like, Great idea. I was like, Yeah, that just sounds like a lot of work. It is a lot of work, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 23:45

Podcasts are not too important.

SPEAKER_02 23:47

Yeah, it was like I'm gonna have to hire somebody to like edit it because I don't have the patience to do it, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 23:52

But yeah, it's uh it can be a lot. There are days where I'm like, well, there are days like when I know we have to record, and I'm just like, but she'll show up to the house and we're like, this is not a recording day, this is a planning day. We'll have to record tomorrow because I'm not in it. So when we have scheduled guests, it's a different thing. But right, like I feel like we come we have our own way of preparing for when we're hosting guests on here, and we're trying to make it kind of an every other episode situation, which I love. Yeah, I'm gonna put this back in the back.

SPEAKER_02 24:22

That way, like your your followers, they get just you two, and then every now, like every so often I just get their personality into the mix.

SPEAKER_00 24:31

Yeah, yeah. I think I think uh it's funny because our recent one that we did, just the two of us, is performing really well, like out of nowhere. And I don't I it must be the subject matter of that one. It's so wild how you just never know how how it's gonna happen. But like it also depends on like the guests, like if they if you guys share it and who you share it with and how excited your community is. Yes, do that, do that. Which I started on my Snapchat, like promoting it. Yay! Very good, very good. Yeah, I love it.

SPEAKER_01 25:04

And I'm empty now. Oh, good. That was a good timing for me too, because I was like, I break and drinking so much water earlier to finish it so you could try the good stuff.

SPEAKER_02 25:14

Yeah, but red blend was it's not my favorite, but it was pretty good. Oh yeah. We're really going through this one, and it's got a it's got like a smoky finish, so yeah, of course. Thank you.

SPEAKER_00 25:25

It's good. Thank you. Can't really tell how much is in there, but you know. You're doing a good job though. We're really putting this back for you. Thank you so much for sharing.

SPEAKER_01 25:37

Okay, lovely. Yes, perpet or wherever. Wherever. So I'm not walking your feet. Let's go. They know what's going on. Oh my god, I like that one.

SPEAKER_02 25:46

It's like it's a little smoky. It's like jump along with their theme of the smoky hill showerhouse. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 25:52

All right. So we're going into you. You're gonna dive into yeah.

SPEAKER_00 25:57

Okay, we ready to get back out? Yeah, yeah. I think we're good. Okay. So let's talk about what drew you into this campaign.

SPEAKER_02 26:06

So I was on somebody's team last year, and I was really moved. I've never at the time, I had never even been affected by blood cancer. Nobody in my family had had it, like I haven't had it. But I was so moved by everyone else's story, and then watching all of the other visionaries who were affected by it, because most of them had been. Yeah, usually somebody who has been nominated has has been affected in other ways. At that point, I had it. But I was like, I really want to help. Yeah, this is a great cause. It is a great cause, and I want to be a part of it. So I I signed up. I was like, let's, or my the Vanessa, who was on my team, nominated me for the campaign this year. And then shortly after that, my late husband's grandmother got diagnosed with leukemia. Oh no, and I was like, gosh, so was I drawn to do this as part of the community just because I I don't know. So line. Right. Like it's like, okay, I was meant to be here. Clearly, yes, yes, and and then I met the honor heroes, yeah, Zach, and then Pam. Wonderful humans. We had a kickoff last week and they were telling their stories, and I was just sitting there, I was bawled.

SPEAKER_01 27:28

Yeah, I haven't even heard the stories, and I'm like, I was bawling. So I was just like, this is exactly where I'm supposed to be right now. Yes, yes, it's a it's a terrible thing to have to deal with for sure. Absolutely. My aunt had leukemia eggs, so I mean, she's not not no longer with us, but I know how much she struggled, and it just caused a whole whole life issues for her at an early age. So yeah, it's a that's a really great cause to get into.

SPEAKER_00 27:56

It really is. It really is. So what have been like your initial ex your initial emotions going into your campaign?

SPEAKER_02 28:05

I so I was automatically scared because at finale last year, I was at they had it at the Witchdraw Marriott, which is where it was this year. I saw each of the candidates who really worked their campaign. Uh-huh. And they all just like they were so stoic because I think they were just so like exhausted and ready, but then they were all still so so supportive of each other. And I love that kind of community that of just like technically, like we're competing, uh, but I still love you and I love what you're doing. I'm gonna support you. Yeah, it's a common cause, and that is the greatest part of it. And that's why I was like, I want to be a part of that.

SPEAKER_01 28:46

Yeah, I love that too, because that's really what it's all about, is that's the whole purpose. We all know we're here for the same thing, and it's to help, and it's to make a greater cause. And yeah, yeah. So even though it's a competition, it's like, oh, like let me help you do good, and you help me do good, we're gonna celebrate whoever wins. Like, like, I don't think anyone's gonna be upset if they don't win. Oh no, absolutely not as they're just still gonna be so happy to have participated in everything moving forward and raising all the money.

SPEAKER_02 29:15

And and that is again, like you going back to your question, like why I wanted to sign up for it, because it is creating just so many bombs. And I love yeah, I love Witchdraw and I love the community that we have here that I mean, we've all built, and so like let's bring it all together for a good cause.

SPEAKER_00 29:33

Yes, true. Like, I I remember when I was getting into it, and my friend Stephanie had taken me out to lunch randomly, which she had never done, and I had never heard of this, never knew anything about it, but it was the it was her pop in the question, do you want to be part of this thing? I'm I'm nominating you. Are you okay with that? I will help you every step of the way. We'll make a team and and showing up at kickoff for me, that was when I that was when I was like I was nervous, so nervous. And then showing up at kickoff and just seeing how everyone interacted with each other and seeing the littles, the kiddos back then. Uh oh my gosh, so there's all there's always like a little girl and a little boy of the honor heroes, yeah. The honor heroes. And God, just seeing how just being part of the energy that night, I was like, so it's the same thing. It's like I think that I'm definitely in I'm definitely supposed to be doing this. Yeah, and I got my team around me, and like eventually what I mean. I don't think the anxiety ever left the entire campaign because it's just it's a constant, are we gonna like I know that you're doing it, like we're the whole thing is all for good, but at the same time, there's also goals, and if you don't meet the goals, it's not the end of the world, yeah. But like it's still like a hey, I have to work my hardest. I'm working so hard for this, and I really want to do the best that I can. And but it was definitely a right place, right time situation for me too. And I think that I'm really hoping that every candidate goes through that because it's visionary, yeah. Right. But yeah, I hope everyone's has a similar experience because I know 10 years later, I've it's like still one of the coolest things that I've ever done in my life.

SPEAKER_02 31:17

Yeah, I'm glad that you mentioned kickoff and how like you felt then because about the the team or all of the candidates, because there were a few of us that got an award on kickoff day for raising X amount of dollars. Nice. And they handed Tori Stokes, they handed her her like necklace. It was like a goat necklace, and I was walking up to get mine, and she like she had it in her hands and she was getting ready to put it around her her neck, and she like put it around mine because it was like we are literally in this together, yeah. So sweet. And I was like, I know it was I love I love the team that they've put together of candidates because we all just I don't know, mesh really well together.

SPEAKER_01 32:01

Yeah, and I love that I love that that also knows you're around a group of strong individuals, absolutely like, and when I say strength, you know, mentally, emotionally, like, and just like powerhouses that are passionate. I think that anyone that has that sort of passion, they have that certain level of strength that bonds them together.

SPEAKER_02 32:20

Yes. I'm glad that you say that because there was one event, the boots and buckles. Uh-huh. I started to panic about it because it was it's big. It's gonna be big. And so I was gonna be like, I'm I don't think that I want to do this, it's a lot of pressure. And then Mark Shook, who is the other, the candidate who we were partnering together, he was like, You and I have got this. Like, yeah, he's like, You and I together can do this. Like, let's go. Yeah. And I was like, okay, let's go. Let's let's do it. We signed a contract together for the venue and everything. And I was like, Exactly.

SPEAKER_01 32:59

You gotta be in on the same boat as people that you know you trust, that share that same passion and strength because yeah, there's gonna be days where you're like not feeling your fullest, you know, not feeling as confident or moments of weakness. And that that's great because that gives your teammates that are just there for you, too, that that opportunity to bring up and have you power through it, and give you that energy you need that you didn't necessarily have yourself. I was like, nobody's gonna want to go, nobody's gonna want to go to any of my events.

SPEAKER_00 33:28

Everybody's gonna want to go. Our own self-talk, like we are also good at self-sabotage sometimes.

SPEAKER_01 33:34

I do it almost every day. We gotta ignore ourselves and be like, you're gonna do great, you know. And then I'm like, yeah, okay, you're right. But I will tell you this again tomorrow. I think we're gonna get through this again tomorrow.

SPEAKER_00 33:47

And I will tell you my game tomorrow. But it works. Everybody needs those people, it's like the soul food. Yes, yeah, you gotta have the you've gotta have the support. It really takes a village, a community. I love the I love the community. We love community on this podcast, that's for sure. I don't like how my phone keeps beeping at me. So very popular. It's the community gent. It's the community. We walk through. So is there anything like significant that you're kind of discovering in real time as you go through this?

SPEAKER_02 34:18

I mean, the amount of people that because when I first started, I was like, obviously, I've I have a huge network of people. Like I go to all of the networking events multiple like days a week. Like usually like five days a week. I'm at something networking. And I was like, I was like, yeah, these people like me as like a person, like they'll sit there and have a glass of wine with me. I was like, but are they gonna look to help me? Yeah, it's a yeah, and so that was like my biggest thing. Like, I have made asks, and I was like very nervous about like the asks. Like, would you like to sponsor this? Uh-huh. And just automatically expecting the no. And they're like, I would do anything for you. Yeah, like I would laugh. The cause and I love you, so like, let's do it. And like, you're like, really?

SPEAKER_00 35:04

I was like, really? You like that is a thing that I learned. That is one thing that that campaign really taught me was getting comfortable with asking for sponsorships as I continue my work with Digital Wichita sponsorship. I went in and just like pitched somebody like we I went from a meeting at a coffee shop yesterday and getting really excited about a pitch and just driving right on over to the depot right after and said, Hey, will you sponsor this speaker dinner for us? Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah.

SPEAKER_01 35:32

Like, yeah, no more nervousness. Confidence, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 35:35

Yeah, like it gives you a confidence. And here's the thing that my mentor sent to me, she's like, You she's just Stephanie. She always said, shoot for the moon. Yeah, if you get the stars, that's okay. But like the most painful thing that they, yeah, right. Oh my god, I love that, right? Um my god, I know. Like it was it was so helpful. And she's like, and the worst that could happen is like is they say no, and does that hurt? I'm like, no, it doesn't hurt. It was like, okay, so that made me a lot braver about asking for things. And so I came away with a new skill on top of everything else. Yeah, which is used to that. So do you feel like this is already changing you and not even done with it yet?

SPEAKER_02 36:15

I do, I do because and just like we said, like it has given me a level of confidence, like because it at networking events, like they could be so surface level, right? That I have I've been a part of for a couple years now. So very you always just think it's surface level, and then you realize like later on that you've built like lifelong friendships. Yeah, the people that I've have on my team are people that I've met at networking events, yeah. They are powerful, then they have their networks, and they do, and they are it's a group of all women except for my boyfriend Casey, uh-huh. So, and he's fine being in a room full of women, like he's just like, You guys need more wine, but he's also got great ideas, and but it's just women who and that's why I feel comfortable having as many events as I do uh because they're all taking them on, also. So I get to delegate, which is nice. Yes, and I feel so safe and secure with the delegation. I don't have to check up on them. That's I don't have to macromanage anything. Don't have to do that, uh-huh. And so it does take a lot of stress off me to be able to do that. So the team that I've built has also helped build up my confidence.

SPEAKER_01 37:35

Yeah, so that trust builds confidence. Yeah, I love that. Yeah, and that helps you know that you're capable of everything when the people around you you can trust. Yeah, like our one of our quotes is trust is built in the small moments, not the big ones. It's with the little things that builds it up. It's so true. And then all those little things, and you just you just know. Yep, yep. So that's heartwarming too.

SPEAKER_00 37:58

It really is, and and it it teamwork really, I mean, it really does make the trick. It really does.

SPEAKER_01 38:03

And then you're all gonna be able to look back on this and be like, how fun was that? Let's do it again, we do it different, let's do it better. I love that.

SPEAKER_02 38:12

So, and then so you know how Tori started Wine About Cancer. Yeah, so with boots and buckles, Mark and I are like, well, what if we do this every year? Oh my god, yeah. Like Tori has done with wine about cancer and let's do it every year. So that's our goal is to make it as big as Wine About Cancer.

SPEAKER_00 38:29

Oh, that would be incredible. Two big events. I love that idea. Yeah. So that's what we're gonna get into now. We're in your mini tour, which is more like a mini tour, honestly. Like, let's go down this list. You have a baseball game on April 3rd, you have Bitchy Bingo on April 9th, Boots and Buckles is coming up, and that's a wave on the night on April 19th. And that's indoor. A lot of people thought that it was outdoor, but it is indoor indoor.

SPEAKER_02 38:57

So rain or shine.

SPEAKER_00 38:58

Rain or shine. Boots and buckles is gonna be a wave. Oh, that'll be fun. Then you have Run for Blood Cancer on April 25th. Is that a is that a 5K? What is this?

SPEAKER_02 39:07

It is a 5k, and then there's like a one-mile fun run. We partnered with Park Run, Witchdall. So they do like a 5K basically every Saturday at Exploration Clays. Oh my gosh. Oh, that's so cool. And I know it's so fun. And I did love I started doing it a couple years ago when I went on my weight loss journey, and the community was so welcoming. Yeah, yeah. So when I approached them, I was like, hey, you guys really helped me. If you could help me again, that would be great. Absolutely. And so we Curtis with Park Run, he also works for basis engineering. Uh-huh. Very amazing human. He was like, Yeah, if you guys want to, he I was like, and I was like, and I understand like your people do it for free every week. I was like, they do it every week, so I don't expect them to pay. And he was like, I'm gonna put it out to the team, and I guarantee that at least half of them will pay just because it's for a good cause. I'm like, obviously, I was like, but if they don't, it's also fine. Yeah, we're just they're having a good time together. Yeah, so that's so great. Yeah, I love it. I've met so many like people in the community that just want to help.

SPEAKER_01 40:08

Yeah, so yeah, I love too. Yeah, if I was already running every free and then I have the opportunity to just pitch in something, anything for to do the same thing I've been doing all the time for such a good cause. Right.

SPEAKER_00 40:17

I would need to so and then you have Wichita themed trivia night on April 30th. Tell us about that. Oh, I love Wichita, yes. I like to see you shirt.

SPEAKER_02 40:31

Yeah, I love so growing, I mean moving here, I didn't understand Wichita. From the arena? Yes. Okay. I didn't understand Wichita, and then I lived here and I worked in I worked at 911 for like almost 10 years. Oh wow so then like there were times that I did not like Wichita. Oh, yeah. Whoa, it'd probably be mad at Wichita. Yeah, flip side. So five years ago, if you had asked me what's your favorite thing to do in Wichita, I would have been like, to leave to my house, right? Like leave and go anywhere else. And then I started working at Visit Wichita. Yeah, I fell in love with this city. Like, I have a romance with this city. Yeah, yeah. Like we have so many cool things to do here. Yeah, so many cool facts about Wichita. And so we decided that we were going to do a Wichita themed idea. I think I'm in that term.

SPEAKER_01 41:21

I mean, I I wonder, I'd like I feel like I'd go and I'd let myself down because I probably am not gonna be able to answer.

SPEAKER_02 41:26

I've been looking at it. I've learned so much. Like I was like, I don't even know this. Let's put it in. If you don't know, then they're gonna learn something. So I've loved that I've done this so much. Yeah. That's also gonna be so that's my second event at Exploration Place. So but they'll be they'll be in that little the classroom off to like the left, like next to the dome.

SPEAKER_01 41:48

Okay, yeah. When we're done with this, I'm gonna put them all on my calendar before night.

SPEAKER_02 41:53

So I'll send you the links for all of them.

SPEAKER_00 41:55

That would be great.

SPEAKER_02 41:56

Yes. Oh, well, we all won't want those, and then we're gonna have a silent auction for that exclusive will be there. Oh, great. I think we're gonna do a taco night. We have we're still on the house. Oh, that sounds like fun, but that one's gonna be it's really fun. Oh man, I'm excited too.

SPEAKER_00 42:12

I hope I get to go. Yeah, and then you have your poker run and drunk take on April 9th. Drunk take a drunk take will be, and I promise it will be a drunk take. Just fill it up with beer from basically.

SPEAKER_02 42:25

What is tell us about that? I'm gonna I'm gonna start with the adult prom because we changed the date of the drunk take, yes. Oh, and you have DJ Panda doing this. Adult prom 90s and 2000s with DJ Panda at the boathouse. Okay, so two just I I mean with DJ Panda, the boathouse, the but iconic. It is real, and then we'll also have like a wine, and I'm trying to get a whiskey pool together, so we'll be a wine and whiskey pool. Oh my god, and then maybe a silent auction, and then exclusive will also be there because that was an exclusive property. And I'm so excited for that. I'm excited. Still looking for the perfect prom dress. Okay, okay. I don't know if I want to go with like a 2000s theme because I mean I went to prom in 2005. Yeah, so I'm like, no, that's totally still in style. I don't know. Oh man. So and then the poker run, yes, guys. Yeah, how's that work? I'm gonna tell you right now how I came up. This was my first event. So this is my baby. This is the one. Because when I I talked to Alan Walsinger, who won in 24. Okay. And I was like, are there rules to how you can raise money? I'll see you for a friend. Right, okay, guidelines, right? And he goes, It's like he clutched his pearls. Yeah. Like a wine tasting, and then And he was like, Well, what are you thinking? And I said, I want to do a dirty biker bar crawl. Like I was like, do a poker run at local dive bars, like hole-in-the-wall dive bars, right? And I was like, and then we'll end at the best dive bar with a dunk tank where everybody can throw, like you can after they're wasted. Yeah. And and then dunk their favorite bartender. My God. That's amazing. And and he was like, I love this. Yeah. Yes. Please do this. And so I went and talked to the bartenders, all of my favorite like dive bars. And they were like, I'll do it. Yeah, 100%. So I tried to, I moved it deeper into May because it's warmer. So it's harder. Oh, very smart kind of view. And then people have asked if I would be getting at the dump table. Yeah, it's the right dollar amount. I absolutely would. So we're gonna do like five dollars for three throws, or you could pay$20 to run up and smash it. What? Oh my god. You can run up and smash it for$20. I love that. No one's done that before that I've known of. So that's hilarious.

SPEAKER_01 45:12

You get a slam dunk for$20.

SPEAKER_02 45:15

Yeah. And then there will be a 50-50 raffle at basically all of these events. Yeah. Slam dunk. I had to reset it.

SPEAKER_00 45:23

I'm gonna circle back to the baseball game. Tell us about that because we kind of rushed by it, but it hasn't been mentioned anywhere else in the game.

SPEAKER_02 45:29

We did, and the baseball game is my very first event. Okay. Yeah. I'm acquainted with Matt Hamilton, who's the GM for Windsor. Yeah. Okay. The most amazing human. And I was like, how crazy would it be if I had Zach, who was our honored hero, who was diagnosed with blood cancer at oh goodness, when was it? 2022. And he's 14 now. So wow. But he was so young. Yeah. I was like, how great would it be if Zach threw out the first pitch opening weekend? Yeah. And he was like, Oh my gosh. And he was like, Will we have somebody for opening night? And I was like, No, no, cool, that's fine. And he was like, What about the next night? And I was like, Are you sure? And that's where the are you confident enough to make the ass. Yeah. Yeah. He could have said it. He could have said, maybe not opening weekend, maybe X weekend or whatever. And that would have been fine. It was like, no, I will make this work for you. That's okay. So we're also selling tickets with my link for to basically like a percentage that 50% of the ticket sales from my link will go to my campaign. Wow. But then Zach also gets to throw out the first pitch. And I that I think that's what I'm most excited about. That's what I like to do. Telling Zach's story is my mission. Zach and Pam both like their stories are very unique, very important. So the fact that Zach gets to throw out the game, and then Pam and her husband will be there. So everybody just gets to celebrate.

SPEAKER_00 47:01

I love that. That's a great first event. I've also talked about that. So they came together. A double kickoff. Yes, in baseball season. Pitch off.

SPEAKER_01 47:10

Pitch off. Pitch off. That sounds like an insult. Pitch off.

SPEAKER_00 47:16

All right. Well, okay, now let's dive. Now we've talked we've talked a lot about your campaign and your events. Let's talk about what um what Blood Cancer United does. Okay.

SPEAKER_02 47:25

So Blood Cancer United, especially for the visionary thing, they basically were all raising money to help provide advocacy, research, anything that could help patients and their families. So essentially, last year the visionaries raised$264,000 in their 10-week campaign. We only have 10 weeks. That's amazing.$264 quarter million dollars. That's amazing. Wow. However, over$500,000 from Blood Cancer United was given to Wichita families or Wichita area families. So like in the region. Yeah. So basically every dollar that we raise stays in our community. Wonderful. And I love that. That's good to know. Like obviously, I want to help everybody. I want to help everybody, but I want to help at home first. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 48:19

Yeah, absolutely. So I love that. Every dollar that oh my gosh, that we all came. That's incredible. Yeah. Stays right here in Lichta. It really does. That matters so much. Yeah. So yeah, that really goes, that goes so far beyond the event. The events are great, and those are going to be memorals memories that people are going to have for forever. But oh my gosh, this is like affecting people's lives in a very real way. Yes. So now, how can people get involved with you?

SPEAKER_02 48:46

So I will I've posted on all of my social medias and I will give you the link to all of the event links. Also, Wave is promoting boots and buckles. Oh, yeah, there we go. We love it. You know, love it.

SPEAKER_00 49:00

Wonderful.

SPEAKER_02 49:01

And so just buy tickets. I also will give you the link for the campaign. If they don't if they can't go to any of the events, there's also the link to donate straight to my campaign. Love it. So go straight to that.

SPEAKER_00 49:16

And then even if you can't donate, share the events. Do whatever you just anything that you can do, every little bit counts. Tell people about the events, talk about them, even if you can't go yourself, you know. Yeah. And we will also provide links to be able to contact Jamie as well. So if you have a creative idea or you just want to help in an in a different way, just reach out to Jamie. I'm sure you'd appreciate it.

SPEAKER_02 49:43

I really would. Yeah. Even if you just want to chit chat, just email me, I guess. Yeah. Because clearly I like to talk.

SPEAKER_00 49:50

We love that. Why do you think we started this? We're just little yappers every year. But cheers to you and your campaign. Cheers. It takes a lot of wonderfulness to be a part of something like this. Yes. Thank you. I love it. I'm very proud of you. I love this. I love this for our city too. Um, you're really pulling this together and celebrating Wichita at the same time, which I love so much. Yes.

SPEAKER_01 50:12

And I think I love that you went more, you said they said go stick with the corporate things. You said, I love events, and you're making that more locally, locally ingrained and kind of like mourn into Wichita by doing all these events at different Wichita locations. You know, I like that. And so I think that you're really maximizing that. Yeah. Thank you. And I think that that's gonna gain even more support from everyone. Yeah, I think I sure hope so.

SPEAKER_00 50:38

Yeah, thank you so much for happening.

SPEAKER_01 50:41

You're really engaging the community in that way. I really think that's awesome.

SPEAKER_00 50:45

Yeah, so that's great. Well, Jamie, thank you so, so, so, so, so much for letting us host you. Thank you. Yes, and for hosting us here at Home2Suite. Yes, yes, lovely space. If you've never been out to visit Home Two Suites, or if you know somebody coming into Wichita that might need an extended stay or just a fun weekend stay, check this place out. It is awesome. It's awesome. Yes. Well, cheers to you too. Final cheers.

SPEAKER_01 51:08

Thank you so much. So this happens. So this happens. Catch us next time. Bye guys.