Community Café Executive Director Bailey Curry, a senior at Smith-Cotton High School, is one of 10 nominees in the KCP&L 2015 Community MVP program this week.
The Community Café feeds approximately 120 people each evening Monday through Friday, working toward combating hunger in the Sedalia area. Curry said she coordinates the serving groups and scheduling changes.
Information on the KCP&L Community MVP website explained the award program.
“The KCP&L Community MVP program is intended to spotlight the youth in the Greater Kansas City region that are working hard to give back,” the site said. “Ten finalists will be selected by KCP&L from all the nominations submitted. During the voting period, one finalist with the most votes will receive a $5,000 scholarship. The other nine finalists will each receive a $1,000 scholarship. In addition all finalists will receive a VIP game day experience at the Chiefs versus Raiders game on Jan. 3, 2016.”
Curry’s counselor Carmen Brock, at Smith-Cotton, nominated her for the award. The award received from the program is slated to go toward college.
“We got an email a week later, and I was one of the 10 finalists,” Curry said.
Voting for the nominees began Nov. 24 and closes on Thursday. Currently she has 36 percent of the votes, she added.
Thanksgiving evening she attended the Plaza Lighting Ceremony, at the Country Club Plaza, in Kansas City as part of the program.
“They invited us to go and be on stage, and talk about our cause and what we do in our communities,” she said. “We got to celebrate with the whole KCP&L organization.”
Curry, who plans to attend Missouri State University in Springfield, has been the executive director at the Community Café since May 1. She will major in cellular-molecular biology, with a pre-med focus.
“I want to be a trauma surgeon,” she noted.
Due to an athletic injury last year, she was unable to play volleyball for S-C. During her downtime, she looked for other activities she would be able to do while recuperating. Since she enjoys community service work the Café was a good fit.
“Community Café happened to be one of them,” Curry said. “I just fell in love with it as soon as I went down there. I knew that no matter how busy I was, the next year I was was going to make time in my schedule for it.”
She added she loves seeing and visiting the people every night.
“I love making close and personal relationships with the people I’m helping,” she added. “I like helping people I see every day. I see their lives and I know their children and I know their stories …”
She believes her love for community service will help her as she trains to become a trauma surgeon.
“Through that field, I think I can help a lot of people every day,” Curry said. “That’s one of my major things. I love science, and I love helping people. So, I think I can combine them both in that field.”
She added that to receive the award would be “amazing.”
“It would be one step further in getting ready for the college process,” she added. “It’s amazing just to be recognized for what I’ve done in the community, and for people to see that. It feels really great.”
Curry is the daughter of B.J. and Stacy Curry, of Sedalia.
Those wishing to vote for Bailey Curry may do so at www.KCPL.com/mvp. Those voting can vote once a day each day; voting ends Thursday.