University mourns death of KLETC’s Mark Bomgardner

YODER — The University of Kansas has lost a key member of the Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center. Mark Bomgardner, deputy assistant director, died Sunday, July 27, at Reno County Hospice House in Hutchinson.

“I join the KU community in grieving the death of Mark Bomgardner, who played an essential role in providing our state’s law enforcement officers with the best learning environment possible,” said Chancellor Bernadette Gray-Little. “We are keeping his family and friends in our thoughts.”

A unit of KU Continuing Education, the training center is a 173-acre, 15-building campus 12 miles southeast of Hutchinson, near Yoder.

Bomgardner joined the training center in 1999 as a training/technology specialist. He later became the deputy assistant director in charge of technology on the campus and supervising the center’s tech specialist. Whether it was classroom A/V technology, computers, networks, servers or campus WiFi access, Bomgardner ensured that the center’s campus technology functioned, day or night.

“Mark was the type of employee that every director dreams of supervising and having as part of a leadership team — dedicated, loyal, hard-working and committed to always doing what’s right,” said Ed Pavey, director of KLETC. “Mark’s harmony and teamwork approach inspired the cooperation and confidence of others. His legacy will forever remain at KLETC.”

A celebration of life service will be at 1:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 1, at CrossPoint Church in Hutchinson. Visitation will be from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday, July 30 — with the family present from 6 to 8 p.m. — and also from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday, July 31, at Penwell-Gabel Funeral Home and Crematory in Hutchinson.