Julie Edge

Edge, 37, is the President and Founder of Inside Edge Solutions LLC, a bioscience consulting firm. She began her career in biosciences as a legislative assistant for science issues for U.S. Rep. Ike Skelton (Mo.). While working for Rep. Skelton, she earned her PhD in Biology and Public Policy from George Mason University. After receiving her doctorate, she went to work for Monsanto in St. Louis, where she became immersed in plant biotechnology. When she and her husband, Randy, moved to Kansas City in 1998, her experience landed her on the Global Biotechnology Practice at Fleishman-Hillard. She founded her own company in 2002. She served as a bioscience adviser to the Kansas House and Senate leadership, which helped lead to the Kansas Economic Growth Act’s $500 million Bioscience Initiative. She is a member of the Board of Directors of Citizens Bank NA, a company owned by her family, and serves as secretary on the Board of First Capital Corporation. She and Randy have two children: Caroline (5) and Nicholas (3).

Elsie Faciane

Faciane, 38, the Senior General Council for HCA Midwest, oversees the legal operation of 11 hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, physician practices and other healthcare entities acquired in HCA’s $1.3 billion 2003 acquisition of Health Midwest. Her professional and community work was recognized in January when she was named as one of the area’s “Black Achievers” by the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. She has served in numerous community organizations, such as Leadership Slidell (La.), YWCA Battered Women’s Program, Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA), the Children’s Advocacy Center, the Commission on Families in St. Tammany Parish and The Learning Exchange of Kansas City. “My commitment to community has consistently led to rewarding experiences in organizations providing assistance to families, women and children,” Elsie said. The Slidell, La., native and Washburn Law School graduate spent many summers in Kansas City visiting her older sisters and their families. She now lives in Kansas City with her 11-year-old niece and enjoys outdoor activities, playing golf and traveling.

Michael Farmer

Some would say that Farmer, 35, had it all, but he knew he had left it behind and wanted to return to it. Farmer, Director, Strategic Partnerships with Kozoru, Inc., a 2004 start-up company that built a new search-engine platform, had worked in San Francisco for three different companies, and then in New York for Orca Gear, Inc. He also received an award for Outstanding Academic Achievement from prestigious Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. But his Midwestern roots (he was raised in Russell, Kansas) lured him and his wife, Bridget, and their 2-year-old daughter Abigail back to Kansas City. Farmer is heavily involved in the legislative process, taking a leadership role in the creation of the Kansas Economic Growth Act (enacted in 2004), the Kansas Angel Investor Tax Credit (signed into law in 2004), and the Kansas Bioscience Authority Act (enacted in 2003) designed to make Kansas one of the most highly desirable states for bioscience research and technology. He also was appointed to Senator Pat Roberts’ (R-Kan.) Taskforce on Science, Technology and the Future.

Edward Foster

Foster, 37, was on the verge of becoming a Partner with Polsinelli Shalton Welte Suelthaus law firm when opportunity knocked. While it was hard for him to leave the firm and the certainty that went with it, he couldn’t resist the chance to get in on the ground floor of an up-start tech company backed by some of the best-known venture capitalists in the country. He accepted the position of Vice President and General Council for eScout, which later changed its name to Perfect Commerce after buying out a company of the same name. He oversees all legal matters for Perfect Commerce, a company that provides state-of-the-art connections between buyers and suppliers. Foster also owns a small real estate brokerage company called The Foster Company, which is licensed in Kansas, Missouri and Arkansas, and a cigar store in Westport called “Fidel’s,” which he calls “more of a hobby.” He serves on the Pembroke Hill Alumni Association Executive Committee and the American Royal Association. He and his wife, Sherri, have two children: Taylor (13) and Alexis (2), with another on the way.