Children First: CEO Kansas Inc.

08/27/2026

It is with profound sadness that I share the death of Casandra Hall, Children 1st Employment Director. Casandra passed away just 18 days after the death of her beloved husband, James. We find comfort in knowing that they are now reunited.

Casandra was an amazing member of the Children 1st team. Her compassion, dedication, and commitment to the families we serve touched so many lives. She will be deeply missed by her colleagues, the families she supported, and everyone who had the privilege of knowing her. Our thoughts and prayers are with Casandra’s family and loved ones during this incredibly difficult time.

If you would like to honor Casandra and James through a financial legacy gift to support the work they cared about, donations may be made to the Wichita Foundation https://wichcf.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/create/fund?funit_id=1507 for the Children 1st endowment.

07/30/2026

With school starting soon, 250 students are off to a good start! At Children 1st, we hosted the Start Strong Back to School Event at Woodland United Methodist Church. A big thanks to the Genesis Foundation for Fitness & Tennis (shoes), DownTown Kiwanis Club, AgVantis, Catholic Family Federal Credit Union, the Barton Foundation, Bombas Socks, and Holy Family Medicine (who provided school physicals and immunizations) for helping make this a big success. Also, thank you to Fidelity Bank for the great volunteers. Let the learning begin!

07/17/2026

Company Retreat at Brightwater Bay!
Man, we had some fun in the sun and learned some things along the way thanks to Amy from WASAC

07/12/2026

2026 is the year of our 26th birthday!
Wouldn't have been possible without an amazing network, community, and staff. Thanks beyond words for all the wonderful work!
Happy 26th Birthday, Children 1st!

07/09/2026

Big Shout out to the Jo Zakas Legacy Foundation for their donation! This is making a Getting Ahead class happen for our community happening soon!

07/07/2026

Moving from immediate crisis response to long-term stability requires a deliberate, structured framework. While running a successful anti-poverty initiative is vital, embedding that framework directly into your program design—and securing the sustainable funding to back it up—is where true community-wide transformation happens.

Join us for our breakout session, 12 Key Resources In Action. We will share lessons learned, best practices, and actionable tips from Children First CEO Kansas on how we used the 12 Key Resources to build a thriving Staying Ahead program and increase parent stability. We’ll provide templates for program design, break down funding and grant writing strategies that generate real revenue, and host a collaborative group brainstorming activity to help you apply these models to your own organization.

Come join us at the Together We Thrive conference in Wichita, KS, October 11-13.

🎟️ Grab your tickets today at www.emergesolutions.org!

07/06/2026

In case you didn't know, you can always go check out the fun we are having in our gardens this summer. Over on Instagram, the team at is always posting some cool stuff. Check it out!

06/22/2026

Already having fun at Camp and its only day 1!

Funded in part by one of our Innovation Grants, Children 1st launched a one-week summer camp pilot for foster children in fifth through 8th grades in June 2025. During the pilot year, 13 campers participated in team building, conflict resolution, confidence-boosting activities and more while buildin...

06/16/2026

Thank you!
Precious Blood Peace and Justice Committee
for impacting poverty and supporting our work!