Entrepreneurial American Leadership Award

The Entrepreneurial American Leadership Award acknowledges the civic capacity building, commitment, vision, and entrepreneurial spirit of an individual. Those honored with this award are real “doers” that accomplish change for the betterment of our communities.

Bob Kendrick began his involvement with the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum (NLBM) as a volunteer in 1993. He teamed with the immensely popular former Negro League player and longtime NLBM chairman, Buck O’Neil, to help grow the not-for-profit organization from a one-room office in 1990 into its current 10,000 sq. ft. home in the Historic 18th & Vine Jazz District in Kansas City, Missouri.

O’Neil’s death in 2006 coupled with an economic downturn had the museum’s survival in jeopardy. Kendrick, who served as Vice President of Marketing, left the NLBM in 2010 to pursue another career opportunity. He returned in 2011 after the museum’s board elected him President. Under Bob’s direction, the NLBM has returned to profitability and is playing host to nearly 60,000 visitors a year.

The NLBM is the world’s only museum solely dedicated to preserving and celebrating the history of the Negro Leagues and its impact on the social advancement of America. Bob Kendrick’s entrepreneurial spirit and leadership has allowed this important cultural institution to flourish while educating people worldwide about a significant, but once forgotten, chapter of Americana.