For the second year, Spray KC and artist Katie Lee partnered with Lead to Read KC to help bring the organization’s annual KC Reads Breakfast Gala to life through bold, cohesive visual storytelling.

Following her work on Lead to Read KC’s Philly award-winning 2025 campaign, Katie Lee returned in 2026 to develop the creative identity for Kansas City Reads: Sports Edition. Held just months before Kansas City hosted the 2026 Men’s World Cup, the event connected the city’s passion for sports with Lead to Read KC’s mission of building stronger readers and stronger futures.

Katie Lee created the event’s branding, invitations, signage, backdrops and environmental graphics, transforming the space with artwork that felt energetic, joyful and distinctly connected to the spirit of Kansas City.

The event brought together leaders from Sporting Kansas City, the Kansas City Current and the Kansas City Royals, along with Bob Kendrick of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, all rallying around the importance of literacy, mentorship and showing young people that their community believes in them.

With more than 2,000 weekly reading mentors and approximately 40,000 donated books distributed each year, Lead to Read KC makes that belief tangible every day.

Katie Lee’s work helped give that mission a visual voice, creating an environment that celebrated reading, community and the idea that every young person deserves the opportunity to become a champion.

Here’s a news segment that KCTV5 reported on for the annual event:

https://www.kctv5.com/2026/04/30/kansas-city-sports-leaders-highlight-literacy-ahead-world-cup