For the third episode of Believe in KC, Wes Rogers, Kansas City councilman and candidate for mayor, sits down with Jared Horman, a freelance Kansas City muralist and designer. The theme: public art as the face our city shows the world. With millions of new eyes on Kansas City after the World Cup, they get into who gets to paint the picture, and whether the art the world sees is made by local hands. Jared on how a mural actually gets made, the pieces that mean the most to him (a mural for the brain-cancer nonprofit Head for the Cure, and a World AIDS Day mural remembering the generation Kansas City lost), and why a wall with art on it feels cleaner and safer. Wes on what a mayor can actually do for the makers: turning vacant lots and blank walls into studio and gallery space, treating working artists like the small businesses they are, cutting the red tape, paying local, and putting a real line for public art in the budget. Plus the giant World Cup heart, KC as a UNESCO City of Music, more art north of the river, and a couple of very Missouri hunting stories.

Find Jared Horman on his website or on his Instagram, both linked below!

Website: https://jaredhorman.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jaredhorman/

Believe in KC, Conversations with Wes Rogers. Wes is a Kansas City councilman running for mayor. Watch or listen wherever you find your podcasts: https://wesforkc.com/podcast

For the second episode of Believe in KC, Wes Rogers, candidate for Kansas City Mayor, sits down with Ashley Aune, the Missouri House Minority Leader from the Kansas City Northland. The heart of it: how a blue city gets real things out of a red state capitol, and when the state just needs to let Kansas City cook. Amendment 5, the August 4 ballot measure that would swap Missouri's income tax for higher sales taxes on nearly everything from child care to haircuts, and what that means for a border city where shoppers can cross the state line in five minutes. Medicaid cuts that land on University Health, Swope, and City Hall. The divorce law Ashley fought for years to pass so pregnant women can leave a marriage. The three state lawmakers coming home to run for City Council. The streetcar north of the river, real trains to St. Louis and Lawrence, and keeping our graduates in Kansas City. And what it takes for a mayor to actually deliver with Jefferson City: relationships, results, and being in love with this city.

Follow Ashley Aune at ashleyformissouri.com, on Instagram @ashleyformissouri, and on TikTok @ashley4mo.

For the first episode of Believe in KC, Wes Rogers, candidate for Kansas City Mayor, sits down with Valerie Hughes, a Kansas City licensed therapist who specializes in human sexuality. They start with conversion therapy: what it actually is, why it so often targets kids, and the lasting harm it leaves behind. From there the conversation opens wide. Fear, faith, and the economics underneath the backlash. How people really change their minds, and why curiosity beats arguing. Social media. Housing as the one lever that moves everything else. Getting more of Kansas City's LGBTQ residents onto the boards and commissions that run the city. Criminal justice, mental health, and who we lock up. It is honest, funny, and wide-ranging, and it ends with a message to anyone who has been through conversion therapy: in Kansas City, you are welcome.

Reach Valerie Hughes at valeriehugheslpc@gmail.com.