Kansas City - 2020 was a historic milestone for The English-Speaking Union. It was the centennial year for both the U.S. headquarters in New York City and the Kansas City Branch. Our Kansas City Branch continues its centennial celebrations by taking a behind-the-scenes look at Kansas City in its early days. When the ESU Kansas City Branch was founded in 1920, Kansas City was one notorious and scandal-ridden town. 

The guest speaker for our ESU Annual Meeting is author and publisher Karla Deel. Her book, "Storied & Scandalous Kansas City—A History of Corruption, Mischief and a Whole Lot of Booze," is an in-depth account of how Kansas City operated in its early days with mobsters, bootleggers, madams, political bosses, and raucous entertainers who truly brought the party to the plains.

Don't miss this special online ESU Kansas City Annual Meeting and lecture program on Thursday, January 28, 2021 at 5:30 pm. We can't celebrate with our usual Holiday Brunch this year, but we can hold up a glass and toast to a better and brighter 2021.

Our Annual Meeting and Lecture program is free and open to all ESU members and guests. We welcome everyone to hear about the notorious Kansas City you never knew.

You will receive a confirmation of your registration. Then, a couple of days before the program, you will receive a reminder email with a link to join the Zoom meeting on January 28 at 5:30 pm.

Bring your favorite beverage with you on the 28th so we can have a virtual toast to start the New Year and  welcome our guest speaker, Karla Deel.

At the end of Karla's talk, we will have time for questions. Be sure to stick around to the end because we will have our popular door prize giveaways. 

Again, please invite friends and family members to register for this special annual meeting and lecture program. What better way to kick off the New Year than experiencing the seedier side of Kansas City history—a side you never knew!

About the author

Karla Deel lives and works as a writer, poet, researcher and freelancer in Kansas City, Mo. She has a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing and Media Arts from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. In November 2019 she published her first book, Storied & Scandalous Kansas City, a History of Corruption Mischief and a Whole Lot of Booze (Globe Pequot Press). She was a member of the 2020 Kansas City Artist INC cohort. Deel also serves on the Jackson County Historical Society board, works in communications for the Friends of the Kansas City Public Library, and volunteers for several local nonprofits. In February, 2021, she will begin a month-long competitive writer's residency in the outskirts of Oaxaca, Mexico to work on her next book. In her spare time, you can find her reading, practicing Kundalini yoga, enjoying good food and wine or making mischief with her feisty teenage daughter, Salem.