bmcatee@fcifire.com

913-205-7187

Barb McAtee is the Baha’i Faith Member of the Council.  She has been a member of the Baha’i Faith since 1966.  She has served on the local Spiritual Assemblies of Kansas City, Missouri; Evanston, Illinois; Manhattan, Kansas; and Overland Park, Kansas.  (There is no clergy in the Baha’i Faith.  Local Baha’i activities are administered by nine-member Spiritual Assemblies, which are elected on a yearly basis by the adult members of each municipality or county where nine or more adult Baha’is reside.  In the greater Kansas City area there are Spiritual Assemblies in Independence, Lee’s Summit, Kansas City, Missouri, Kansas City, Kansas, and Overland Park.  Nearby Asemblies include St. Joseph, Columbia, Springfield, Lawrence, and Topeka.)

Barb served at the office of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of the United States in Evanston, Illinois for two years.  She also made a nine day pilgrimage to the Baha’i World Center in Haifa, Israel in 1997.  (It is a law of the Baha’i Faith that every adult Baha’i make a pilgrimage to the the Baha’i holy shrines at least once during their lifetime, if possible.)  In addition, she visited other holy sites in Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nazareth, Sea of Galilee, Cairo, and London.

Barb is a trained study circle tutor.  (Study circles incorporate a series of courses which increase knowledge and  spiritual capacity.  They are free, open to everyone, whether  casual seekers, new members, or seasoned members of the Baha’i Faith.)  She has also taken various classes regarding the Baha’i Faith and other faiths through Wilmette University, an online academic institute.
Barb is trained in CISM (Critical Incident Stress Management).  Sheserved on the CISM team and the Diversity Advisory Council at KU Med; and was a founding member of KUMC Interfaith at KU Med, where she retired in 2003.  Other non-profit/volunteer experience includes:

•    Member of the Board of Directors of Cultural Crossroads
•    Member of the Board of Shawnee Mission Hospital’s Institute for Spirituality and Health
•    Dialogue Racism Facilitator
•    CPR/Advanced First Aid Trainer for the Red Cross
•    Explorer Post Advisor
•    Cub Scout Den Mother
•    Interfaith Advisory Council at Kansas State University

She majored in Criminal Justice at Washburn University.  She was a legal secretary for four years and a police officer/detective for 24 years.  She is currently employed by Fire Consulting International, Inc., a fire consulting and investigation firm.

She and her husband Rob enjoy biking, hiking, traveling, wilderness camping, whitewater rafting, kayaking, canoing, dancing, music, and playing with grandchildren.  They host interfaith devotions at “Camp Harmony” each year during the Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield, Kansas.  For several years, Barb wrote music reviews and interviews of bluegrass entertainers for Cross Country Magazine, which is no longer published.