G. Kenneth Baum, 91, passed away on Nov. 9, 2021, with family at his side and many others sharing love and support by phone. Favorite classical pieces and songs from The Fiddler on the Roof were playing in the background.
At the celebration of life held for him on Wednesday, Nov. 17 at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, a story was told of how when Kenny was growing up, he would belt out these ‘Fiddler’ songs at the top of his lungs; another story mentioned that later in life, he loved to hide the afikomen at Passover and got great pleasure in watching the children search for it.
Rabbi Alan Londy of The New Reform Temple noted that Kenny was a founding member of NRT, and that he “reflected deep Jewish values,” some of which included family, tzedakah, truth, making one’s self a mentor, and more.
Kenny, born July 6, 1930, in Kansas City, Missouri to parents George Kohler and Ruth Goodman Baum, enjoyed a remarkable lifelong friendship with his older sister, Elaine. Over the decades they came together for casual dinners, community events and travels around the globe.
Growing up, he attended Bryant Elementary and Southwest High School and graduated from Pembroke-Country Day in 1948. He studied history at Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota, graduated in 1952, and remained a lifelong supporter and fan of the school.
Kenny married Jean Berkley in 1960 and they had three children, Jonathan, George and Jessica. They divorced in 1988.
Immediately after graduating from college, Kenny began his professional career at George K. Baum & Company, a regional firm focused on the underwriting and sale of municipal bonds. He succeeded his father and founder of the business, who had suffered a debilitating stroke.
On his first day, he drove downtown to the Pioneer Trust Building on Baltimore Avenue and, according to Kenny, “sat in the only seat available, which was my father’s.” He embraced this challenge as he would with most difficulties to come, not focused on what would happen if he failed, but rather by getting down to work.
Kenny took tremendous pride in the work of municipal finance, raising capital for cities, states, hospitals, school districts and related entities. He believed it to be a noble business and took delight in quizzing friends and family, asking them to guess the name of the city that served as the county seat for each county in Kansas and Missouri. No surprise, he knew them all.
In 1994, he sold the business to his son, Jon, and continued in an advisory role as the business expanded to 24 cities and 200 employees.
In 2002, Kenny married the love of his life, Ann Kaufmann. Their love of the arts, music, travel and family fostered a deep love and admiration for each other. They encouraged and supported each other’s desire to give back to the Kansas City community by serving on numerous boards, and through philanthropy focusing on education/inequality, art/culture, environment/conservation and projects to improve the quality of life in Kansas City.
Kenny was admired for his devotion to family and friends and for his role as a community leader in business and philanthropy. He believed in encouraging and supporting family and friends, contributing to meaningful projects and trying to leave the world a better place. His positive attitude and belief that hard work and perseverance will result in success inspired those around him to do their best.
Kenny knew no strangers. He loved talking to people and learning about their passions, their children, how they spent their time and their goals for the future. He was as comfortable in his scarlet jacket jumping fences with the Mission Valley Hunt as he was enjoying classical selections at the symphony.
He biked across Martha’s Vineyard in the summer, traveled to New York City to see the Metropolitan Opera in the fall and encouraged everyone to enjoy a scoop of ice cream in all seasons. He relaxed on a weekend afternoon by reading nonfiction or watching a favorite film on the Turner Movie Channel.
Kenny will be remembered for his dedication to preserving the natural world. His love of the outdoors originated with his father, a forestry major. For more than 30 years, Kenny assembled acreage in southern Johnson County to safeguard its natural state and beauty, protecting it for generations to come from development or degradation. He worked to conserve natural treasures across Kansas and was proud to be a founding member of the Kansas Chapter of The Nature Conservancy’s Board of Trustees.
His interest in exploring the wonders outdoors is a legacy that will be cherished by his children and grandchildren, who will remember him crossing golden fields with a walking stick in hand, making note of the blue herons landing on their nests, or pointing out coyote tracks at the creekside.
Kenny was comfortable and enthusiastic in raising money for community projects that he cared about and never took no as a first or final answer. At the time of his death, he served as a member of the following civic organizations: the Board of Trustees of the Kansas Chapter of The Nature Conservancy; President and Director of Blue River Land Trust; University of Missouri-Kansas City Trustees Emeritus and as a Trustee of the George K. Baum Family Foundation and the G. Kenneth Baum and Ann Baum Philanthropic Fund.
He has previously served on the Board of Directors of the Jewish Heritage Foundation, Kansas City Economic Development Council, the New Reform Temple, the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Menorah Medical Center and as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of University of Missouri-Kansas City.
Kenny loved helping organizations and individuals think through problems and develop strategies to solve them. As he served with others to advise and grow businesses, he also developed lifelong friendships. He was a member of the Board of Directors of American City Business Journals, Inc., Gilbert/Robinson, Inc., H&R Block, Inc., Interstate Bakeries Corp., Jason/Empire, Inc., Kansas City Public Service Co., King Louis International, Inc., Sealright Co., Inc., Smith & Loveless, Inc., Unitog Co. and Woolf Brothers, Inc.
Kenny was preceded in death by his parents, George and Ruth, his son, George Kohler, and his sister, Elaine Ryder. He is survived by his loving wife, Ann, his children, Jon (Sarah) and their children Brian, Carter, Mark and Meredith, and Jessica Pasmore (Chris) and their children Catherine and Will. He is also survived by Ann’s daughters, Rachel Loeb (Zach Block) and their children Solomon and Walter, and Emily Loeb (Lee Hammons) and their children Hannah and Samuel.
The family requests that contributions in his memory be made to the Kansas Chapter of The Nature Conservancy, the Kansas City Symphony, the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art or The New Reform Temple.
