mark m.

Mark M. | Server/Host/Kitchen

You Say Tomato

Years of Industry Service: 35

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A 12-year-old when he first stepped into the restaurant industry, Mark says he kind of grew up in restaurants. For the past ten years, he ran an organic gardening program for K-8th graders at USD 500, the only gardening program in Kansas. Unfortunately as with many programs at many schools, funding for the program fell through last year* so he started working at You Say Tomato little by little. At the four elementary and three middle schools, they harvested from the gardens and cook them in the classroom. "They got to have the whole food cycle," Mark says. "That's what I love about this place too. We cook everything homemade and use local products." 

Aside from gardening and restaurant work, Mark is also a theater person. He hosts a show on 90.1 FM (KKFI) called Midday Medley that is primarily a music program that supports and helps promote local artists and musicians. KKFI has been in Kansas City for 23 years and is almost totally driven by volunteers.

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*They JUST got their funding!!! Congratulations Mark on getting your program back!

  Make KC Better » Light Rail. Trains from the Airport to Olathe. Organic gardens in every neighborhood, providing organic produce to all. Bike lanes. Safe sidewalks in every neighborhood, for kids to walk to school. After school programs for all students Pre-K through High School. Free tutoring for all students. More free clinics. More fresh food pantries, especially for at risk youth. A swimming pools for kids in the inner city. A real investment, by city leaders, in our most precious resource: our youth. More respect for artists who make our city beautiful. 

annie c.

Annie C. | Manager

You Say Tomato

Years of Industry Service: 15

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As a mother, it can be very hard to make a living and take care of your children, especially when they are babies. But when you have You Say Tomato owners like Mark Wingard and Randy Parks who allow employees to bring their babies to work, it certainly makes things a lot easier. Annie says, "I wore my baby (at work) for almost two years. She wasn't here full-time but she was here several days a week. It allowed me to work full time without having to pay for daycare." Her second child was parked comfortably in a stroller in a corner of the restaurant. "They (Randy and Mark) have allowed me a lot of freedom. They've been really flexible with me, my kids and my schedule. That afforded me a lot of stability. Not many businesses will go for that and certainly not a corporate entity."

Another reason this bring-your-babies-to-work method works is because their customers are like family. Since customers at this neighborhood grocery and favorite breakfast-lunch restaurant always ask about her kids, Annie keeps photos of them up on the counter. "We get to know them and they get to know us."

  Make KC Better » I would fix the schools in a manner that actually fixes them & not destroy them further. I want my children to go to public school and just because it's free doesn't mean it has to be shit. I would like to take an active part in fixing it. (Through fixing the education system), we could draw people here.