Marjorie Powell Allen Chapel, Powell Botanical Gardens

Completed in 1996, this 4700-foot chapel was named in honor of Marjorie Powell Allen, a philanthropist who led numerous efforts to support the well-being of children, opportunities for women, and the beautification of Kansas City. Powell established the Women's Employment Network of Kansas City and also gave the Powell family farm to the nonprofit that operates Powell Gardens, a gift of over eight hundred acres. The chapel was designed using the Prarie School architectural style popularized by Frank Lloyd Wright and designed by E. Fay Jones who trained under Wright. Similar to famous Prairie School designs, the chapel is integrated into the surrounding landscape with wood, glass, and stone that blend into the surrounding gardens that were so important to Marjorie Powell. Like the building that bears her name, Powell worked within and rose from the larger landscape of her surroundings, working with others while leading efforts to build institutions that support professional opportunities for women, a children's camp, and the botanical gardens in Kansas City.

Marjorie Powell Allen was born Marjorie Brown Powell on May 7, 1929, to George Powell and Hilda May Brown. George was a self-made businessman who led the growth of Yellow Freight System, a national transportation company that is still headquartered in Overland Park. Marjorie, also referred to as Margie and Marge, was remembered by many as an outgoing and caring child who always wanted to help others. 

In 1938, Marjorie Powell Allen recalled her first experience witnessing the effects of racial discrimination when her 4th-grade class took a field trip to downtown Kansas City. Later in her life, she credited this experience and the skill of her 4th-grade teacher in making sure they saw the experiences of their fellow citizens as a pivotal moment that inspired her later efforts to create opportunities for diverse citizens, including the formation of the Central Exchange, a network for women created at a time when organizations like the Kansas City Club and University Club, the city's most influential social organizations that helped develop professional connections, were closed to women. 

Marjorie attended Southwest High School in Kansas City from 1942 until 1946, where she was an active member of many activities. She participated in athletics including basketball, tennis, and ping pong, as well as the Sappho Literary Society, Student Council, Driving Club, and the Red Cross Club. Her active participation in high school reflects the ways in which she would continue to participate in her community and better the lives of those around her. After graduating, Marjorie Allen went to Northwestern University to pursue a Bachelor of Science in Education, which she received in June of 1950.

Throughout her time in university, she would serve her summers as a camp counselor and riding instructor at Camp Shoshoni in Colorado. Coincidentally, this would be where she would meet her future husband, Bob Allen. The pair dated while Marjorie finished graduate school and Bob finished his undergraduate degree. 

Marjorie attended the State University of Iowa where she earned a Master of Arts in Physical Education and Recreation. After graduating, Marjorie was offered a job as the head of women’s Physical Education at Carthage College in Carthage, Illinois. She held this position for a year before returning to Kansas City to wed the newly graduated Bob Allen on June 7, 1952. The couple remained in Kansas City until Bob enlisted in the Coast Guard and the couple lived in Miami until returning to Kansas City and purchasing a home in Lake Quivira, slightly West of the Kansas City metro area.

responding to the needs of neighboring residents, Marjorie Powell Allen began a summer program for the children of the area which grew into the Quivira Recreation Association by 1955. The organization offered individual schedules for each youth based on their needs, a model that served as a blueprint for the development of Allendale, a children's camp established in 1962 that became the Allendale Educational Foundation, a not-for-profit organization supporting outdoor education. She also created a similar camp for urban youth known as the Wildwood Outdoor Education Center. 

Her time as co-director of Allendale ended in 1977 when her father, George Powell, named Marjorie the president of the Powell Family Foundation, the philanthropic organization of the family. Marjorie Powell Allen also served as the Vice President of the Clearinghouse for Midcontinent Foundations and became the Chairman of that organization in the 1980s. She also served as the President of the Barstow School Board of Trustees. 

Marjorie Powell Allen attended the first National Women’s Conference, which was held in Houston, Texas, in November of 1977. She credits this experience as an inspiration to create the Central Exchange with Beth Smith. At a time when fraternal organizations that were closed to women formed the basis of many networks in business, the creation of the Central Exchange created similar opportunities throughout the city for women. The pair also created the Women’s Employment Network to provide more opportunities for women to discover available positions and benefit from professional development. Both the Central Exchange and the Women’s Employment Network continue to operate today. 

Today, Marjorie Powell Allen may be best-known in Kansas City for her leadership in the creation of Powell Botanical Gardens. In 1969, George Powell donated this land to the Boy Scouts who operated a regional camp until 1984. The Powell family then operated the not-for-profit Powell Gardens, originally in conjunction with the University of Missouri. After a reorganization in the late 1980s, Powell Botanical Gardens opened to the public in 1991. During these years, Marjorie Powell Allen was diagnosed with stage four cancer. In the final three years of her life, she battled cancer while leading the community organizations she founded in addition to creating the Women’s Foundation of Greater Kansas City in 1991. hen Marjorie Powell Allen passed away on September 24, 1992, she was remembered for her advocacy on behalf of women, her support of efforts to improve the lives of children, and her leadership of Powell Gardens. In recognition of this work, Marjorie Powell Allen Chapel in the Powell Botanical Gardens was dedicated on April 20, 1996.

1. About the Women's Employment Network, KC Women's Employment Network. Accessed November 6th 2021. https://kcwen.org/about-us/about-wen.
2. Allen, Deborah Jean. Becoming Marjorie: the life and legacy of Marjorie Powell Allen. Leawood, KS. SkillBuilders Fund, 2017.
3. History, Powell Gardens. Accessed November 6th 2021. https://powellgardens.org/about/history/.
4. Marjorie Powell Allen Collection, MS 344, LaBudde Special Collections, University of Missouri-Kansas City Libraries, Kansas City, MO. Upon Special Request.
5. Where It All Began, Central Exchange. Accessed November 6th 2021. https://centralexchange.org/our-history/.