Millie Burch Mehnert was part of the Kansas City music “scene” for 50 plus years.

Millie was born in Kenansville, NC and graduated high school at 17. She then attended UNC Greensboro where she majored in music but considered English as she also wanted to be a writer. Upon graduation, she ventured far across the country to work in Yellowstone National Park and experienced the last great earthquake in West Yellowstone in the summer of 1959.

Millie married John Mehnert in 1960 and moved to Kansas City where she put her music degree to work teaching piano to dozens of students a week at a studio on the plaza. When the couple settled in Johnson County, Millie started her own piano studio in the family’s home while raising three sons.

She believed in providing leadership in music and education organizations, becoming President of the Kansas City Music Teachers Association and Federated Music Teachers. Millie became a member of Sigma Alpha Iota Music Fraternity in 1960 and enjoyed many friends, including her mother-in-law, during her long association with the Kansas City Alumnae Chapter.

Millie retired from teaching piano in 2007 and utilized her new found time to revisit her early desire to be a writer. Her book titled ‘The Savages of Yellowstone’ was published in 2015 – based on a young romance with the historical backdrop of the Yellowstone earthquake she had experienced.

We honor Millie by presenting this music scholarship in her name.