Jackson County Combat

10/12/2026

“I’d probably be in a grave or in a prison.”

Travis Beisely doesn’t mince words when asked where he’d be now if he hadn’t returned to Welcome House for treatment after suffering a relapse.

His struggles with addiction illustrate why COMBAT’s ongoing investment in substance use disorder treatment remains crucial for Jackson County.

Welcome House served more than 650 men last year, with approximately 75% served through COMBAT funding. Its clients include men who have experienced homelessness, unemployment and involvement with the criminal justice system—all working to rebuild their lives.

The impact of successful treatment extends beyond individual recovery. Welcome House President & CEO Jamie Boyle says the goal is to help each man return to his family a better person and to the community as a productive citizen.

“Without the funding and support of COMBAT, we could not do that,” Boyle says.

He speaks from personal experience. Boyle first came to Welcome House seeking services and is now more than 14 years sober.

▶️ Watch the full video at https://www.jacksoncountycombat.com/1229/Hes-Not-In-A-Grave-Or-PrisonCOMBATs-Impa

10/06/2026

HELPING CHILDREN HEAL & LAW ENFORCEMENT INVESTIGATE

Imagine being a child forced to recount one of the most traumatic experiences of your life—not once, but again and again.

“Sometimes a child told their story over and over again, traumatizing themselves eight or 10 times,” says Child Protection Center President & CEO Lisa Mazell.

The Child Protection Center serves between 800 and 1,000 children each year—including children who have experienced abuse and those who have witnessed violent crimes.

“We serve quite a few children who have witnessed domestic violence or homicide,” Mazell says.

COMBAT funding helps pay for CPC forensic interviewers, who work with children while assisting law enforcement investigations throughout Jackson County.

▶️ Watch the full video to see how COMBAT funding helps give children a safer way to tell their stories—and helps make the Child Protection Center “a safe place to be.”

https://jacksoncountycombat.com/1230/Protecting-Children-Supporting-Investiga

09/30/2026

COMBAT IMPACTING HOMICIDE CLEARANCE RATE

Nationwide, the average homicide clearance rate is just below 60%. The Kansas City Police Department is currently clearing homicide cases at about an 80% rate, and the commander of the KCPD Violent Crimes Division credits COMBAT for helping “drive the clearance rate in the right direction”—well above the national average.

COMBAT provides funding for analysts now embedded with each squad in the Violent Crimes Division, and Kirchhoff stresses that “they drive the investigations,” through providing crucial leads for detectives. COMBAT also funds crime lab technicians, helping the KCPD process evidence, including weapons and illegal drugs, more quickly.

“COMBAT funding makes a significant difference,” Kirchhoff says. Without that support, the KCPD “would be a lot further behind.”
Get just the facts.

Learn more about how COMBAT makes an impact on KCPD’s ability to solve crimes and to engage with the community to reduce violence: https://www.jacksoncountycombat.com/1228/COMBAT-Impacting-Homicide-Clearance-Rate

09/30/2026

The Community Backed Anti-crime Tax (COMBAT) provides essential funding to keep Jackson County safe. Though only a quarter-cent, the tax generates an average of $31.5 million to support local law enforcement, Jackson County courts and more than 100 community programs for crime prevention and drug treatment. COMBAT funding is set to expire next spring, but a no-tax-increase extension of COMBAT is on the November 3 ballot.

Essential funding for:
★ Local law enforcement
★ Jackson County Courts
★ Crime prevention programs
★ Addiction treatment programs

09/10/2026

Greater Impact Kansas City's Branden Mims stresses the importance of the Jackson County Community Backed Anti-crime Tax: "Without COMBAT support, many of your local neighborhood community-based programs would not exist."

09/08/2026

'What It's All About'—A Recovery Story

Sasha was struggling with addiction and didn’t believe sobriety was possible.

Today, she has a strong support system, a one-year sobriety coin and a new goal: helping others on their recovery journey.

“There is help, and there’s people willing to wrap their arms around you and support you on your journey,” she says.

Greater Impact KC, supported by Jackson County’s COMBAT, helped give her the tools and support to move forward.

“To now see her be a productive and contributing member of this community is what it’s all about.," declares Greater Impact Kansas City CEO Branden Mims.

08/25/2026

Through mid-2026, the Jackson County Drug Task Force had—over a five-year period—seized more than 48,000 grams of fentanyl. That's enough fentanyl for more than 24 million potential lethal doses.

Task Force detectives also seized more than a ton of methamphetamine and 533 fi****ms, including 24 illegally-modified to be fully-automatic machine guns. But these numbers tell only part of the story.

As Blue Springs Police Chief Bob Muenz points out, we don't number of deaths these seizures prevented, while making our community safer: "That all equates to lives saved, overdoses that are not occurring, drugs that are not getting into our children's hands.”

Watch the video to learn more about the life-saving work of the Jackson County Drug Task Force and the impact of COMBAT funding.

08/25/2026

Through mid-2026, the Jackson County Drug Task Force had—over a five-year period—seized more than 48,000 grams of fentanyl. That's enough fentanyl for more than 24 million potential lethal doses.

Task Force detectives also seized more than a ton of methamphetamine and 533 fi****ms, including 24 illegally-modified to be fully-automatic machine guns. But these numbers tell only part of the story.

As Blue Springs Police Chief Bob Muenz points out, we don't number of deaths these seizures prevented, while making our community safer: "That all equates to lives saved, overdoses that are not occurring, drugs that are not getting into our children's hands.”

Watch the video to learn more about the life-saving work of the Jackson County Drug Task Force and the impact of COMBAT funding.Over a five-year period, the Jackson County (Missouri) Drug Task Force had seized more than 48,000 grams of fentanyl—along with more than a ton of methamphetamine and 533 fi****ms, including 24 illegally full-automatic weapons.

But the numbers tell only part of the story.

As Blue Springs Police Bob Muenz explains, every seizure represents the potential for an overdose prevented, a death avoided and a community made safer: “That all equates to lives saved, overdoses that are not occurring, drugs that are not getting into our children's hands.”

Watch the video to learn more about the life-saving work of the Jackson County Drug Task Force and the impact of COMBAT funding.

06/03/2026

COMBAT IMPACT REPORT

The 2025 COMBAT Impact Report is our most thorough annual summary to date—a 32-page document emphasizing the essential funding the COMmunity Backed Anti-crime Tax provides local law enforcement and the courts, in addition to supporting more than 100 prevention and treatment programs offering services at more than 400 locations throughout Jackson County.

The 2025 COMBAT Impact Report is our most thorough annual summary to date—a 32-page document emphasizing the essential funding the COMmunity Backed Anti-crime Tax provides local law enforcement and the courts, in addition to supporting more than 100 prevention and treatment programs offering servi...

12/18/2025

SHE ONCE WAS LOST BUT THROUGH SOBRIETY
HAS FOUND NEW MEANING IN HER LIFE THROUGH

She stood on the subway tracks. Trapped in her addiction and haunted by her past trauma, she could not imagine herself ever having a bright future. The next train would end her pain. Someone—a stranger who did not want to see her die—literally pulled her back from the brink and saved Sasha’s life.

But many years passed before her recovery journey would unfold—from that day when she thought death was her only option, to where Sasha is today—so grateful to be alive. Those years of struggle make these last 15 months of transformation even more meaningful to her.

Both her parents were addicted to he**in. As a teenager, Sasha ran away from multiple foster homes, often going to methadone clinics in a desperate search for her mom. As a young adult, Sasha remained very much a lost child—he**in being about the only drug she would not try—until, at 21, she climbed down from the subway platform and onto the tracks.

Within a decade of her su***de attempt, Sasha moved to Kansas City and had “gotten clean.” But staying sober wasn’t easy. She relapsed.
Sasha had a powerful reason to get better: she was a mother. Though she needed help, she feared asking for it might cost her what was most precious to her—her children.

Going to one Narcotics Anonymous meeting in late 2024 changed everything. That meeting led to Sash participating in the COMBAT-supported recovery program offered through Greater Impact Kansas City. When we first met her in March of this year, she talked earnestly about wanting to earn her one-year sobriety chip: “I want to make it for my kids.”

Now a year that began with Sasha rediscovering hope is ending with her making plans for what she wants her life to be in 2026 and beyond. Her three sons are doing well. She is sober, stronger, and ready for the challenges and opportunities each new day brings.

“I used to be living in constant fear,” she says. “How would people judge me? What I’ve been through… those things are behind me. The future looks brighter.”