Now in its 31st year, Motion for Kids remains one of the region’s largest and most meaningful holiday outreach efforts. About 50 law firms and partner organizations participate, each “adopting” children to ensure they receive personalized gifts chosen just for them. Volunteers collectively contribute more than 1,500 service hours to prepare and run this massive community event.

The Saint Louis Bar Foundation, the charitable arm of the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis (BAMSL), has awarded more than $25,000 in grants to 10 nonprofit organizations working to strengthen the St. Louis community through law-related initiatives.

In response to the urgent need for assistance due to the SNAP program (food stamps) being severely and negatively impacted by the government shutdown, BAMSL members and friends supported the food drive hosted by BAMSL’s Attorneys Against Hunger Committee and the Law Library Association of St. Louis.

The Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis (BAMSL) announces the addition of Heather Esselborn as the director of accounting. She has experience in accounting as well as auditing and budgeting with several organizations including Stereotaxis, the Internal Revenue Service and Charter Communications.

Thank you to KSDK-TV for their wonderful story this morning about BAMSL’s Motion for Kids annual holiday party. Over the past 30 years, Motion for Kids has brought the St. Louis legal community together to make the holidays brighter for more than 60,000 children.

Morgan Murphy, Esq., managing partner with the law firm of Zevan Murphy, has been elected to serve as president of the Saint Louis Bar Foundation, the charitable arm of the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis (BAMSL). She will serve a two-year term.

Murphy has served on the Bar Foundation board since 2023. She has been a BAMSL member for more than a decade and served on multiple sections and committees.

The Judicial Legacy Project features interviews with retired judges and jurists in the 22nd Judicial Circuit.

Many of the judges profiled were among the first women and members of the African American community to serve in this role. Their reflections and insights are preserved through this project. 

The Saint Louis Bar Foundation seeks to grant annual awards that meet the Foundation’s criteria for innovative projects that address identifiable unmet needs in the community. The typical grant amount is $1,000 with a maximum limit of $5,000.

The Foundation will consider grant applications for projects or programs within at least one of the following categories: (1) The advancement of the philosophy of law; (2) The promotion and/or improvement of the administration of justice; (3) The promotion and/or maintenance of high standards for the judiciary and lawyers; (4) The promotion of the public’s awareness, understanding, and appreciation of the rule of law, the practice of law, the court system, and individuals’ rights and responsibilities under the law; or (5) The promotion of diversity and inclusion.

Applications may be submitted online at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/WJPDJMM until July 15.

The Saint Louis Bar Foundation, the charitable arm of The Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis (BAMSL), has announced it will provide grant funding to organizations that advance or promote the rule of law. The Foundation will consider grant applications until July 1, 2022, for up to $5,000 for innovative projects that address  needs in the metropolitan St. Louis region.