The 2026 Juliette's Pearls Leadership Society Luncheon was held on Thursday, April 16, at the Marriott Wichita.
This year, our keynote speaker was Sarah Thomas. An American ultra-marathon swimmer who completed four consecutive crossings of the English Channel after battling an aggressive form of breast cancer. She shared her story of joyful resilience and the importance of goals, grit, and grace.
2026 JPLS Luncheon
Thursday, April 16
12 – 1:30 p.m. (Doors open at 11:30 a.m.)
2026 Honorary Chair - Joan Wagner
2026 Legacy Pearl Honorees
Gloria Farha Flentje & Jack Focht
Luncheon Sponsors:
IGNITE
Fidelity Bank
INTRUST Bank
IMAGINE
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas
Evergy
Betsy and Scott Redler
Keynote Speaker: Sarah Thomas
Sarah Thomas is an ultra-marathon swimmer who holds the current world record for the longest, unassisted swim. That record-breaking swim covered 104.6 miles over 67 hours and was completed in Lake Champlain (NY/VT) in August of 2017. Shortly after completing this swim, Sarah was diagnosed with an aggressive form of breast cancer. She was just 35 years old. While undergoing aggressive cancer treatment, including chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation therapy, Sarah never gave up on her dream of doing a swim that most people thought was impossible. One year after completing her cancer treatments, Sarah did just that- becoming the first person in history to complete a fourway crossing of the English Channel in 54 hours and 10 minutes.
Sarah was born in Kansas and grew up in Texas before attending college at the University of Connecticut, where she was a member of the Women’s Swimming and Diving team. Following graduation, Sarah moved to Denver to attend the University of Denver for grad school. In Denver, she discovered her love of open water swimming, first competing in the Horsetooth Open Water Swim 10k in a local reservoir before gradually working her way up to longer, colder, and more challenging swims.
Since her first open water swim in 2007, Sarah’s swimming has taken her around the world, completing both traditional open water swims, but also finding her own routes across lakes, down rivers, and through oceans. In 2022, Sarah became the first person in history to complete a two-way crossing of the North Channel, from Scotland to Ireland and back to Scotland in 21 hours and 46 minutes in freezing water, peppered with giant jellyfish. She was inducted into the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame in 2018, and the Colorado Sportswomen Hall of Fame in 2020.
Sarah currently lives in Conifer, Colorado, with her husband Ryan and their dogs. She is a full-time veterinarian recruiter and coaches other aspiring open water swimmers from around the world.
2026 Annual Leadership Society Luncheon
View photos from the 2026 Juliette's Pearls Leadership Society Annual Luncheon.
