HUTCHINSON, Kan.— United Methodist Health Ministry Fund honored Monica Murnan with the 2022 Kim Moore Award for Visionary Leadership at a May 2 celebration in Hutchinson. Murnan is a former Kansas State Representative and currently serves as Director of Community Support Services at Greenbush.
Since 2017, the Health Fund has honored recipients in a chosen strategic field of work whose leadership has had a positive effect on the health of a specific group of persons. For 2022, the Fund invited nominations for a leader previously or currently serving in the strategic area of early childhood development.
Murnan received the honor for her outstanding work with children in Kansas as a licensed teacher and administrator in public schools, the non-profit arena, education service center settings and in public service.
“Monica has dedicated her life and career to improving the health and wellbeing of children in her community and across the state,” said John Wilson, President and CEO of Kansas Action for Children. “She has raised the collective expectations for how we treat children in the earliest years of their lives.”
Throughout her career, Murnan has shown leadership and prevailed through advocacy for early childhood development. She was the founding executive director of the Family Resource Center, one of the largest childcare centers in Kansas and also helped develop the Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas.
Murnan has served the public at the Kansas State House, on the Pittsburg City Commission, as the mayor of Pittsburg and as the House Minority Leader’s appointee to the Kansas Children’s Cabinet and Trust Fund. She currently chairs the Kansas Action for Children board of directors.
“Monica’s passion for this work has resulted in thousands of children receiving high-quality early learning opportunities, thousands of parents getting supports they need to be better caregivers, and hundreds of early childhood educators and practitioners growing professionally,” said Wilson.
The recipient is honored during the Health Fund’s annual awards celebration. The individual receives a cash award of $500, and if associated with an organization, that agency receives an additional $2,000 to use as it deems.
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