05-07-2010
KMBC'S LARRY MOORE & THE DREAM FACTORY
KMBC-TV's Larry Moore is the dean of Kansas City anchors.
He has anchored the news more than anyone in history. He started at the ABC affiliate in 1968 and was elevated to the anchor spot in 1972, and has been there ever since.
Aside from anchoring and gardening, Moore's real passion is helping make wishes come true for children with life-altering illnesses and disabilities. That's why he helped organize the all-volunteer Dream Factory organization in Kansas City in 1984 and has been its chief spokesman through the years.
Since its founding , 4,600 youngsters have had their dreams come true.
He sent Bottom Line a note about the most recent Dream Factory gala:
May 7, 2010
Wow! What a night! Our Dream Factory fund-raising gala the other night was a resounding success. We granted four dreams on stage that night and raised a lot of money to make more dreams come true.
"I have seen youngsters go on to become doctors and nurses and teachers and scientists and musicians and executives, in part because of the hope and encouragement provided by their dreams coming true," I told the big crowd to thunderous applause.
KU head basketball coach Bill Self was our featured speaker. He also brought the crowd to its feet with his praise of the volunteers of the Dream Factory. He said he was thrilled to be a part of the evening. He joked that you don't get many invitations when you get beat by Northern Iowa.
We awarded the three 2010 Larry Moore Dream Factory scholarships to three outstanding youngsters: Steven Patrick of Kansas City, Missouri, Rebecca Keating of Milford, Kansas, and Ryan Minks of Nesbit, Mississippi. Their smiles were wide when I handed each of them $5,000 checks to the college of their choice.
Lance Westfall received the first dream of the night, a beautiful brand new guitar. Gaby, dealing with the challenge of diabetes, was awarded her dream come true, an Alaskan cruise. Nick Shupe got his dream, going to New York City and seeing the Yankees play. Zach Greene for his dream will get to go to the Sawgrass Marriott Resort and Spa while the PGA championship is in full swing, an adventure of a lifetime.
"This is what our mission is," our director of dreams, Deb Caldwell told the crowd, "to provide special times for children and their families who must deal with daily medical issues."
A lot of wonderful people were on hand at the gala donating a lot of money for dinner and auction items to make it possible for us to make more dreams come true. As I looked at the crowd from the podium as emcee and speaker, I told them, "Thank you from the bottom of my heart for helping put smiles on the faces of deserving children."
Larry Moore
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