Protege Applications for 2019 are Now Closed
Thank you for your interest. Applications for our 2020 class will be open in November 2019. If you have any questions or issues, please contact Mid-America GLCC board member Michael Hopkins at MichaelJohnHopkins@gmail.com.
Program Overview
The C. Stephen Metzler Program, administered by the Mid-America GLCC, exists to promote and expedite the success of aspiring LGBT professionals in the Kansas City community through one-on-one and group mentoring with local business and community leaders that have demonstrated a significant commitment to the LGBT and greater Kansas City communities.
This program is an incredible opportunity for both mentors and proteges to gain a deeper understanding and appreciation for the diversity and complexity of our LGBT identity and community. Mentors will gain a new perspective on the issues facing younger LGBT leaders, and proteges will learn invaluable lessons from the experiences and advice shared by our mentors.
Our goal is to help proteges learn to become stronger leaders in the workplace and in the community by building strong personal and professional networks, thanks in part to the connections available through our highly engaged mentors.
Remembering Steve Metzler
In 2015, the Mid-America GLCC and the entire Kansas City community lost an individual that exemplified personal, professional, and community leadership through his family business, an extraordinary record of community service and civic engagement, and most importantly through the many lives and good works he inspired every single day.
The Mid-America GLCC will be forever grateful for his service and friendship, and is proud to memorialize the legacy of C. Stephen Metzler through our mentor program. #BeLikeSteve
Meet the 2019-2020 Mentors
Kim Jones
Managing Partner at Seyferth Blumenthal & Harris and founding board member of the Mid-America GLCC
Metzler Mentor, 2019-2020 (Protege: TBD)
Kim is an experienced trial attorney, successfully defending employers nationwide in labor and employment matters. Kim also provides training to management and non-management employees, conducts workplace investigations, and advises her clients on thorny employee relations issues. Kim has been recognized by her peers as one of The Best Lawyers in America, a Missouri & Kansas Super Lawyer, one of the Top 100 Lawyers, and Top 50 Female Lawyers in Kansas City.
Kim’s commitment to diversity and inclusion extends to her civic engagement. She has served on the boards of the Central Exchange, the Human Rights Campaign, and the Mid-America Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce. She is also committed to the arts, serving on the Nelson-Atkins Museum Business Council’s Steering Committee, and previously serving on the Friends of Art board.
David Brinkerhoff
President – Kansas City, National Casualty Practice, R T Specialty, LLC
Metzler Mentor, 2018-2019 (Protege: TBD)
Prior to finding love and success in Kansas City, David attended UCLA and began his career working in the Commercial Lines Division of Chubb in 1989. He later moved to Phoenix, San Francisco & Chicago while he climbed the insurance ladder. In 2001, David joined Westrope & Associates, a wholesale brokerage firm, as a managing partner and Executive Vice President of Casualty in Kansas City. He also built the largest casualty book of business within the company, thus creating the National Casualty Practice.
In 2013, Westrope was acquired by RT Specialty where David assumed the role of President of RT Specialty, LLC for Kansas City and became a member of the National Casualty Practice leadership team. In addition, David helped developed, oversee, and lead the summer internship program at Westrope/RT Specialty since 2005. Currently, he serves on the Internship and Career Awareness committee for WSIA, the Wholesale & Specialty Insurance Association.
David Brinkerhoff’s long-time passion for volunteering and community involvement brought him the opportunity to co-found the Human Rights Campaign Steering Committee in Kansas City in 2001. As a founding member of the HRC Steering Committee, he served as co-chair of the committee as well as several sub committees, and is a current Federal Club Member. David is an active supporter and was also a board member for the Medical Missions Foundation. He has volunteered on two missions; Romania and the Philippines. He also was a member of the Chubb Diversity Committee as National Representative for the LGBT Employees.
In his free time David enjoys traveling, spending time with his friends and family, and supporting local non-profit organizations including the arts, health care, and LBGT causes. He lives with his husband and partner of 17 years, Dan Meiners.
David Epstein
Co-Founder, Tom’s Town Distilling Co.
Metzler Mentor, 2018-2019 (Protege: TBD)
The grandson of a Kansas City bootlegger, David founded Tom’s Town Distilling Co in 2015 with his former business partner from BlairLake New Media. BlairLake was a pioneering digital advertising agency with offices in New York and Kansas City, and with clients like The Disney Channel, Lee Jeans and Sprint. Prior to starting BlairLake, David worked with his father as an attorney in Kansas City.
After BlairLake was acquired in 2000 by Compuware Corporation, David worked at NBC in New York City as Vice President of Digital Strategy, NBC Syndication. But a combination of the pull of his hometown & his bootlegging roots to follow his grandfather’s footsteps in the business of booze...David returned home to build America’s best craft distillery.
David is currently running Tom's Town Distillery and has gotten very involved in the local Kansas City community through the Mid-America GLCC, Trevor Project, the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce, and supports a number of local civic and community issues.
Ann Abercrombie
Senior Vice President, U.S. General Counsel at Lockton Companies
Metzler Mentor, 2019-2020 (Protege: TBD)
Ann Abercrombie is an accomplished attorney with extensive experience as in-house counsel within the insurance industry, most recently as Senior Vice President at Lockton Companies. There she oversees U.S. legal matters for Lockton, including internal and external transactions and contract negotiations, litigation and business disputes, and employment and compliance/regulatory matters.
Ann also has a long history of community engagement and community service, having served a number of women's professional groups, including the Women's Foundation of Greater Kansas City and currently serving as the Board Chair for the Metropolitan Organization to Counter Sexual Assault (MOCSA), as well as Operation Breakthrough. She was also recently named to the distinguished list of "Women Who Mean Business" by the Kansas City Business Journal.
A little known fact: When she was an undergrad at Duke University, she beat legendary basketball Coach Mike Krzyzewski in a three-point shooting contest. And she did it with a men’s ball. Boom.
Kevin Case
Founder, Managing Partner Case Linden PC
Metzler Mentor, 2019-2020 (Protege: TBD)
Kevin Case is an accomplished attorney with extensive experience in trial practice, employment law, class action defense, litigation, and professional liability. He is a under graduate of Baylor University and received his JD from University of Kansas. He is a member of Missouri and Kansas Bar Association, as well as a member of the Defense Research Institute, the American Bar Association, Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association, National Association of Dealers Counsel, Universal Underwriters Insurance Company Defense Counsel, and Zurich N.A. Defense Counsel.
Kevin has a long history of community and civic engagement, including serving as Assistant Attorney General for the State of Kansas, City Councilman for the City of Westwood Hills, and on the City Planning Commission for North Kansas City. More recently, Kevin also served on the Board of Trustees for North Kansas City Hospital.
Victoria Kandt
Owner and Executive Coach, Victoria Kandt & Associates
Metzler Mentor, 2019-2020 (Protege: TBD)
Victoria is a recognized thought leader in the field of leadership coaching and corporate culture change. Victoria’s 14 years in coaching/consulting and 15 years previously in career development prepared her to bring expertise in leadership development of executives and high potentials, and building collaborative partnerships and alliances. She has worked with Fortune 100 & Fortune 500 companies and brings to her coaching a variety of skills utilized for those leaders to grow in their success.
Victoria invests her passion and expertise into the community through the Women's Business Enterprise National Council, the Women's Employment Network, Go Read for Women.
UMKC LGBTQUIA Partnership
The Metzler Mentor Program enjoys a unique and important partnership with the University of Missouri Kansas City (UMKC) and it's Office of Student Involvement for LGBTQIA Programs and Services.
Each new school year, Metzler Proteges work closely with our UMKC liaison to organize and engage with LGBTQIA juniors and seniors. The goal is to help prepare students to transition from undergraduate studies into the workplace and other professional settings. Students are also introduced and exposed to the greater Mid-America GLCC community through B2B Networking Events, the Business Equality Conference, and other great chamber programs.
The Metzler Mentor Program is proud and grateful for our partnership with such a progressive and supportive academic institution.
Metzler Mentor Program Committee
Michael Hopkins, Founder and Principal of Curate Health and founding board member of the Mid-America GLCC
Michael Hopkins is a successful healthcare technology professional with prior experience at Cerner Corp., Lexmark Enterprise Solutions (previously Perceptive Software), and most currently Intouch Solutions where he is a Manager for Client Services for the mobile products team. Michael recently started his own company, Curate Health, which is building a consumer ready personal health record and social network to help people care for themselves and their loved ones better.
Michael was on the founding board for the Mid-America GLCC and has recently returned to launch the mentor program. He is a Kansas City Health Commissioner, is on the board of SAVE Inc., and is involved with AIDS Walk Kansas City.
Kim Jones, Managing Partner at Seyferth Blumenthal & Harris and founding board member of the Mid-America GLCC
Kim is an experienced trial attorney, successfully defending employers nationwide in labor and employment matters. Kim also provides training to management and non-management employees, conducts workplace investigations, and advises her clients on thorny employee relations issues. Kim has been recognized by her peers as one of The Best Lawyers in America, a Missouri & Kansas Super Lawyer, one of the Top 100 Lawyers, and Top 50 Female Lawyers in Kansas City.
Kim’s commitment to diversity and inclusion extends to her civic engagement. She has served on the boards of the Central Exchange, the Human Rights Campaign, and the Mid-America Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce. She is also committed to the arts, serving on the Nelson-Atkins Museum Business Council’s Steering Committee, and previously serving on the Friends of Art board.