Blue KC’s Executive Chef Named one of Kansas City’s Idealists of the Year
Chef Kyle’s Team Has Prepared 45,000 Donated Meals During the Pandemic
KANSAS CITY, MO. (April 22, 2021) – Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City (Blue KC) is proud to honor Chef Kyle Williams, General Manager and Executive Chef of the Live Blue Kitchen + Café, as one of City Year’s Idealist of the Year honorees.
City Year, a national education nonprofit organization, launched its pilot program in Kansas City in 2015 to address a lack of equitable access to educational opportunities. Since then, they have partnered with seven schools to support 4,500 students to excel in their learning environments. City Year’s Idealist of the Year award honors employees, colleagues or other community members who impact the lives of others through service and volunteerism.
“Chef Kyle has spent seven years at Blue KC not only providing nutritious meals to our employees but supporting our mission to address food insecurity through our Well Stocked initiative,” said Erin Stucky, President and Chief Executive Officer. “I’m grateful for Chef Kyle and his team. They saw an opportunity to support our community by preparing nutritious meals for dozens of local non-profit organizations serving those in need during the COVID-19 pandemic. Because of their compassion and hard work, Blue KC has donated more than 45,000 meals over the last year.”
Chef Kyle has served as the Executive Chef at Blue KC since March 2014, preparing healthy meals for our in-house employee café and sharing healthy recipes with our members. When the COVID-19 pandemic prompted most employees to work from home, Chef Kyle proposed that his team continue safely working in Blue KC’s Live Blue Kitchen and Café to prepare healthy meals that could be donated to feed community members in need.
“Chef Kyle embodies what it means to be a community-minded idealist,” said Stucky. “On behalf of everyone at Blue KC, we celebrate Chef Kyle for using his talents to feed the community where we live and work.”
Chef Kyle was honored in a virtual program and socially distanced outdoor reception presented by City Year on April 21 and is being featured in a print issue of IN Kansas City Magazine.
To learn more about how Blue KC is supporting members and the community through the COVID-19 pandemic, please visit bluekc.com/consumer/covid/index.
About Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City, the largest not-for-profit health insurer in Missouri and the only not-for-profit commercial health insurer in Kansas City, has been part of the Kansas City community since 1938. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City provides health coverage services to more than one million residents in the greater Kansas City area, including Johnson and Wyandotte counties in Kansas and 30 counties in Northwest Missouri. Our mission: to provide affordable access to healthcare and to improve the health of our members. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. For more information on the company, visit its website at BlueKC.com.