Entrepreneur tackling healthcare’s everyday inconveniences wins top pitch night prize
June 17, 2026 | Taylor Wilmore
Lavita Green, founder of CareSticks Mobile Phlebotomy Services, pitches her company during The Porter House KC's 8th Pitch Night at the Kansas City Public Library's Plaza Branch; photo by Tommy Felts, Startland News
A mission to make healthcare more accessible and less disruptive earned Lavita Green the top prize Tuesday night at The Porter House KC’s Pitch Night.
The founder of CareSticks Mobile Phlebotomy Services took home the competition’s $4,000 first-place award after presenting her vision for bringing laboratory services directly to patients, wherever they are.
“Healthcare is inconvenient,” said Green. “Healthcare systems still require patients to adjust their lives around care.”
The event marked the culmination of a 15-week journey for 11 entrepreneurs refining their ventures and preparing to pitch for funding. In partnership with JPMorganChase, The Porter House KC awarded $7,000 in prize money to the night’s top founders.
Lavita Green, founder of CareSticks Mobile Phlebotomy Services, accepts the top prize from Maddie Dierking during The Porter House KC’s 8th Pitch Night; photo by Tommy Felts, Startland News
Founded in 2014, CareSticks provides mobile and onsite phlebotomy services, delivering laboratory collection services to patients in their homes, workplaces and care facilities. The business was created to tackle two persistent healthcare obstacles: access and convenience.
“The solution is CareSticks. We bring that healthcare convenience directly to the people,” said Green.
Over the past decade, the company has grown beyond mobile blood draws to include employer wellness programs, staffing support and workforce training initiatives.
Green highlighted partnerships with Quest Diagnostics and LabCorp as key opportunities to expand CareSticks’ reach while meeting rising demand for mobile healthcare services.
“Partnering with them helps us grow our networks. They’re not my competition. They’re kind of like family. We’re partners,” said Green.
The prize money for CareSticks will help fund website improvements, trademark protection and operational expansion.
“I’m ecstatic. I’m happy, blessed, highly favored and appreciative,” Green told Startland News moments after her winning announcement.
Tuesday’s evening pitch event showcased founders working across healthcare, consumer products, community development and other sectors, while underscoring the relationships built throughout the program.
Eleven founders stand on stage following The Porter House KC’s pitch night for its 8th small business cohort; photo by Tommy Felts, Startland News
Dan Smith, co-founder of The Porter House KC, speaks during the organization’s pitch night for its 8th small business cohort; photo by Tommy Felts, Startland News
“Pitch Night is more than an event. It’s a celebration of people betting on themselves,” said Miranda Schultz, director of operations for The Porter House KC. “It’s a reminder that entrepreneurship doesn’t happen in isolation. It happens in the community.”
Miranda Schultz, director of operations for The Porter House KC, welcomes competitors to pitch night; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News
“We’ve had the pleasure of spending the past 15 or 16 weeks with these great entrepreneurs — great people first, and then great entrepreneurs,” added Dan Smith, co-founder of The Porter House KC.
Among them was Brittny Coleman, whose bath and body care brand HoneyBe Apothecary earned the $2,000 second-place award.
Coleman traced the company’s roots to a lifelong curiosity about ingredients and a desire to better understand the products she used for herself and her family.
“As a lover of words, things needed to make sense, and they didn’t,” she said of product labels she found that listed a confusing string of chemicals and unrecognizable words.
Brittny Coleman, founder of the bath and body care brand HoneyBe Apothecary, delivers her business pitch on stage at the Kansas City Public Library’s Plaza Branch; photo by Tommy Felts, Startland News
What began as homemade products for her family and friends evolved into a skincare brand built around ingredient transparency and straightforward labeling.
“We wanted to make our ingredients very clear as to what they were. We didn’t want you to question anything,” said Coleman.
That commitment remains central to the company’s identity.
“This was the idea behind the package: plain English. Nothing you didn’t understand,” she added.
Customers have embraced the approach.
“People love the fact that our products are transparent and that you really get what’s on the label,” said Coleman.
She plans to use the funding to expand marketing efforts and hire more staff.
Stanley Taylor Jr., founder of Kids Community Growing Prosperity (KCGP), answers questions from judges during The Porter House KC’s 8th Pitch Night; photo by Tommy Felts, Startland News
Audience members selected Stanley Taylor Jr., founder of Kids Community Growing Prosperity (KCGP), as Fan Favorite, earning the nonprofit leader a $1,000 award.
Taylor launched the organization after experiencing academic challenges following his move from Mississippi to Kansas City. Today, KCGP focuses on youth entrepreneurship, civic engagement and health awareness programming.
“When I moved here from Mississippi, I struggled. But I created an organization to help students like me.”
Through KCGP, students have started businesses, participated in mock elections and traveled to Jefferson City and Washington, D.C., to learn about government and leadership firsthand.
“We want to make sure they don’t have that fear when they turn 18 and become eligible to vote. We want them to use their voices as power,” said Taylor.
Accepting the audience-selected honor, he emphasized that the recognition reflected the impact of the entire cohort.
“I know I’m the one fan favorite,” said Taylor, “but we’re all fan favorites because we all do so much here for Kansas City.”
Check out a photo gallery below from Tuesday’s pitch night.
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