BLUE KC AWARDS 2021 DANETTE K. WILSON SCHOLARSHIP TO LOCAL HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATE KELLY VANDENBOS - Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City Skip to main content

Scholarship honors former President & CEO Danette K. Wilson’s legacy

For Immediate Release: August 19, 2021

For more information contact:
Kelly Cannon
Kelly.Cannon@BlueKC.com
O: 816-395-3711
M: 816-686-3842

KANSAS CITY, MO. (August 19, 2021)—Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City (Blue KC) is proud to announce recent local high school graduate Kelly VandenBos as the recipient of this year’s Blue KC Scholarship in honor of Danette K. Wilson.

The Blue KC Scholarship was established in 2019 to honor President and Chief Executive Officer Danette K. Wilson following her retirement. The scholarship awards $10,000 to a first-year student pursuing a business or healthcare degree at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Wilson’s alma mater.

VandenBos graduated summa cum laude from Shawnee Mission Northwest High School in May with an impressive 4.76 GPA. In addition to her outstanding academic achievements, she is active in the community serving as a volunteer at several local nonprofits. She co-founded the Ray Marsh Book Bag Program to provide kindergartners and first graders at Ray Marsh Elementary School with a set of their own books during school closures during the COVID-19 pandemic. VandenBos’ teachers describe her as a dedicated, curious and analytical learner. She is attending the University of Nebraska-Lincoln to study biological sciences and Spanish.

“We are delighted to award Kelly VandenBos the 2021 Blue KC Scholarship in honor of Danette Wilson,” said Erin Stucky, who succeeded Wilson as Blue KC’s President and Chief Executive Officer. “Kelly is a young woman with a passion for improving the community around her. She exemplifies what it means to carry on Danette’s legacy and pride for the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.”

Blue KC partners with the Nebraska Alumni Club of Kansas City, Inc. to award the Blue KC Scholarship in honor of Danette K. Wilson.

Please visit our social channels to join us in congratulating scholarship winner Kelly VandenBos!

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.