by Kelly Rogge, KCKCC
Kansas City Kansas Community College is preparing to celebrate two special occasions – the building dedication to honor a long time member of the Board of Trustees and the ribbon cutting to officially open the brand new softball facility.
To kick off KCKCC’s Alumni Weekend, which is Oct. 22, there will be a free pancake breakfast from 9 to 10 a.m. At 9:30 a.m. the former Conference Center will be dedicated the Mary Ann Flunder Lodge by the Lake. The lodge is located next to the lake just north of the softball field. U.S. Rep. Kevin Yoder is planning to attend the ceremony.
“We are excited to welcome our alums and guests to the KCKCC campus for these two extraordinarily special events,” said Tami Bartunek, executive director of marketing and outreach at KCKCC. “The day promises to create more great KCKCC memories.”
Flunder, who died earlier this year, served on the Board of Trustees for 25 years and was well known in the community for advancing educational opportunities for Wyandotte County residents and senior citizen issues. She served on the National Association of Community College Trustees and was a past chairperson for the Kansas Association of Community Colleges. A graduate of Sumner High School and KCKCC before attending Donnelly College and the University of Kansas, she served on the board of the Kansas City, Kan. NAACP, among other community activities.
At 9:45 a.m. will be the official ribbon cutting of KCKCC’s new softball field. Construction on the field began last year and included the installation of artificial turf on both the outfield and infield. KCKCC is the first member of the Jayhawk Conference to have this type of all-weather field. In addition, the field was rotated so home plate will now face southeast. New dugouts were constructed by KCKCC Buildings and Grounds in conjunction with the Dr. Thomas R. Burke Technical Education Center.
“I am extremely excited to have such a great complex for our softball players to train and compete,” said Tony Tompkins, director of athletics at KCKCC. “I am so appreciative for the support of Dr. (Doris) Givens, Dr. (Susan) Lindahl and the Board of Trustees for the approval for our softball complex. Having a great facility like this will definitely help our softball program compete at the next level.”
The Alumni Softball game is at 10 a.m. and the Alumni Baseball game will be at 1 p.m. KCK Mayor Mark Holland will be throwing out the first pitch with KCKCC President Doris Givens. There will be a free cookout in the Pavilion from noon to 1 p.m. Other activities include free batting cages for children with KCKCC Student athletes, balloon animals and face tattoos.