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KANSAS CITY, Mo. – March 14, 2023 – Let the voting begin! Evergy has selected 10 community improvement projects from non-profit agencies across our service area for a chance to receive a grant up to $10,000. It is now up to supporters to visit the Evergy Facebook page and “like” their favorite service project to cast a vote in the finalists album.

The four projects with the most "likes" by 5 p.m. on March 24 will each win up to $10,000 plus a team of Evergy employee volunteers to assist with the project.

The 10 finalists are:

• Generating Income for Tomorrow (G.I.F.T.),
  Kansas City, MO
  Project: Pop-up for Black-owned businesses
  Generating Income for Tomorrow (G.I.F.T.) holds monthly pop-up events allowing Black-owned small businesses to come together and offer products to new audiences, without the expense of a retail store. The pop-up events allow these businesses to develop and generate new sales and profits. Through expanded marketing efforts, G.I.F.T.’s pop-up events will draw even larger audiences to these monthly events and expand the visibility of successful Black-owned businesses.
   
• Kanbe’s Markets 
  Kansas City, MO
  Project: Moving mobile markets forward 
  The Mobile Markets program expands on Kanbe’s Markets mission to build a more equitable and efficient food system by bringing healthier options directly into communities that have historically not had these options. A new Mobile Market would extend this reach even further by bringing healthy produce to those in Kansas City who have transportation barriers to purchasing fresh and affordable foods.

• Friends of the Kaw Incorporated
  Lawrence, KS
  Project: Working to protect the river 
  Friends of the Kaw works to protect the Kansas River, the drinking water source for over 800,000 Kansans. In addition to large community and river cleanups to remove trash and decades-old debris, Evergy Spread Good Energy funding will be used to launch the Do-It-Yourself Cleanup Toolkit, a resource guide anyone can use to conduct their own cleanup and join a growing community of Kansas River stewards.
   
• Healthy Bourbon County Action Team 
  Fort Scott, KS
  Project: Sensory playground and splash pad
  The Healthy Bourbon County Action Team works to coordinate community efforts that improve health outcomes for Bourbon County, Kansas residents. The sensory playground and splash pad will offer children and their families a fun, safe, barrier-free space to be active, laugh, and interact – regardless of their abilities. It is so much more than just a park. This project will further revitalization efforts, boost community spirit, and enhance quality of life. All residents and tourists will soon have a unique and welcoming spot to gather and socialize in the heart of downtown Fort Scott.   
   
• Passageways LTD
  Wichita, KS
  Project: Creating a safe and peaceful place for our vets 
  The Passageways Living Center provides temporary housing and support to our veterans who are facing homelessness. This project will work to improve the centers outside space and meditation garden though additional fencing and materials. The grant will help construct a new privacy fence and small shed for equipment to maintain the meditation garden used by the veterans.  
   
• Grassland Groupies
  Wichita, KS
  Project: Improving pollinator habitats
  Grassland Groupies, through the Bee City initiative, focuses on improving pollinator habitats and providing more eco-friendly management practices. This project will work to create new and   restore old habitats for pollinator species like the endangered monarch butterfly. The team will also aim to beautify green spaces throughout Wichita, helping to store carbon, purify water runoff from impervious surfaces, and provide Wichita residents and the wildlife that lives in our city with a healthier environment.
   
• Synergy Services
  Parkville, MO
  Project: Synergy Services' learning garden 
  Synergy Services’ mission is to strengthen families and communities through prevention, crisis intervention, and support. To help in the mission, Synergy Services is looking to expand a current garden into a nine-bed learning garden, which will include the use of a recycled bus stop shade structure and a water retention tank. The improved garden will help expand the current curriculum and learning for homeless and runaway youths, an increased produce harvest to support local food pantries and create a unique youth, skill-development opportunity.  
   
• Top City Trails Alliance
  Topeka, KS
  Project: Enhancing the trail system at Shawnee County North Community Center
  With the mission of maintaining and building trails in Shawnee County, the Top City Trails Alliance hopes to make trail improvements at the Shawnee North Community Center. The project will include adding a new beginner trail of about 0.4 miles to the existing 2.5-mile trail at the facility, trail enhancements by reworking unmaintained areas, and adding trail amenities including signage.  
   
• St. Joseph Habitat for Humanity International
  St. Joseph, MO
  Project: Creating impact through a new crisis distribution center 
  The St. Joseph Habitat for Humanity works to provide families with safe and affordable housing and hopes to continue their mission though a new Community Distribution and Education Center. A grant would provide the additional funds needed to finish the new building, including furnishing a new education classroom, providing apprenticeship materials, and installing needed security items.  
   
• Blue Rapids Community Action Team
  Manhattan, KS
  Project: Enhanced playground makeover
  In partnership with the Greater Manhattan Community Foundation, the Blue Rapids Community Action Team has asked for help to enhance a community playground near baseball/softball fields and a community campground. The team will purchase a swing set, install landscaping timbers, and apply mulch to the playground to provide a safe play area to community residents and park visitors.

Over 150 non-profit organizations across Kansas and Missouri submitted community improvement projects for our Spread Good Energy Hometown Grants. Last year, Evergy’s Spread Good Energy Hometown Grants program helped four community organizations with important projects and attracted more than 15,000 votes.

About Evergy, Inc.
Evergy, Inc. (NASDAQ: EVRG), serves 1.7 million customers in Kansas and Missouri. Evergy’s mission is to empower a better future. Our focus remains on producing, transmitting and delivering reliable, affordable, and sustainable energy for the benefit of our stakeholders. Today, about half of Evergy’s power comes from carbon-free sources, creating more reliable energy with less impact to the environment. We value innovation and adaptability to give our customers better ways to manage their energy use, to create a safe, diverse and inclusive workplace for our employees, and to add value for our investors. Headquartered in Kansas City, our employees are active members of the communities we serve.

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