Holly Barnes Milledge (Mrs. Droste DeForest Milledge, Jr.) will serve as the chairman of the 2024 Jewel Ball, which will be held on June 15th at The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. Holly is the daughter of Mrs. Bryant Page Barnes and the late Mr. Barnes. She is the granddaughter of the late Mr. and Mrs. John Henry Young and the late Mr. and Mrs. Frederic Page Barnes. Holly was a Jewel Ball page in 1975 and a debutante in 1985. Her mother, Mrs. Bryant Page Barnes, was chairman of The Jewel Ball in 1995 and honorary chairman in 2022. Holly’s grandmother, Mrs. Frederic Page Barnes, was chairman of The Jewel Ball in 1958. Forest Milledge served on the Floor Committee the same year Holly was presented, in 1985.

A graduate of Sunset Hill School, Holly holds a bachelor of science degree in journalism from The University of Kansas, and she is a member of Pi Beta Phi sorority. Holly has been actively involved with The Jewel Ball for 25 years. She is a BOTAR, class of 1988. In addition to having held leadership positions in BOTAR, Holly currently serves on the board of the Kansas Association of Pi Beta Phi and The Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation Leadership Committee, Mid-America Chapter, Kansas. 

Holly and Forest are the parents of two sons who have both participated in The Jewel Ball. Droste DeForest Milledge III was a Gentleman of The Jewel Ball in 2013, and Peter Bryant Milledge was a Gentleman of The Jewel Ball in 2015. The Jewel Ball benefits the Kansas City Symphony and The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. Margaret Kline Rooney (Mrs. Kevin Joseph Rooney) will serve as the vice chairman. 

Featured in the January 13, 2024 issue of The Independent.
Photo credit: Marianne Kilroy