On May 8, former Missouri Secretary of State Jason Kander will receive the Good Neighbor Awardfrom the Truman Foundation, a prestigious honor that has been given to a number of high profile politicians, journalists and humanitarians over the decades.
Kander told KCUR's Up To Date that it's a surreal, humbling feeling.
"I've been to that event many times, and it's where I met President Clinton for the first time because he got the award," Kander says. "I don't feel particularly worthy of it, but, I'm grateful."
Kander, an Afghanistan veteran who stepped away from a race for Kansas City mayor in 2019 to focus on addressing his PTSD, also commented on U.S. Sen. John Fetterman's time away from office to address his own mental health concerns.
"I operate under the assumption that pretty much everybody we encounter in our lives has dealt with some sort of mental health challenge at some point, or will," says Kander. "It makes me feel like, I want anybody in any public position, whether they be in a political role, a corporate leader, a nonprofit leader, whatever — I would prefer that they have dealt with their stuff."
Kander joined Up To Date to discuss winning the Good Neighbor Award, mental health and Missouri politics.
- Jason Kander, former Missouri Secretary of State, president of national expansion for the Veterans Community Project
