DUNLAP, Kenneth Orville "Ken" - b. September 28, 1942 - d. June 2, 2012

[patyrn]

Kenneth Orville "Ken" Dunlap, age 69, loving husband, brother, father, and "Papa", lost his courageous battle with lung cancer on June 2, 2012.  Ken was born in Wichita, Kansas and attended Riverside Elementary and John Marshall Jr. High.  He attended Mount Hope High School, Hutchinson Junior College, and graduated from Wichita State University in 1965.

After 37 years in public education, Ken retired from the Wichita Public Schools in 2002.  During his career, Ken established the district's first Adaptive Physical Education curriculum at Levy Special Education Center in the early 1970s.  He taught special education and coached at East High School for 18 years where he developed the first community-based instruction program assisting special students with job readiness and placement.  After leaving East High, Ken served as a Special Education Coordinator for five years and as Principal at Starkey, Ketch, and Heartspring.  In 1996, he established Chisholm Life Skills Center where students ("differently-abled" students, as he called them) were taught work and life skills to transition into independent living.  Ken also served on the Wichita Police Department Interview Board and was a member of the Sedgwick County Physical & Development Disabilities Advisory Board for more than 20 years.  

Ken enjoyed hunting, fishing, and boating, and after retirement, he and Jan increased their lake time and began antiquing and traveling.  One of Ken's greatest joys was spending time with his grandsons, swimming with them at the lake, cheering them on at sporting events, and loving them with his whole heart.

Ken is survived by his wife of 46 years, Jan, of the home; one sister, Orlene Thomas of Mulvane, Kansas; two daughters, Kendra (Glen) Chambers of Alexandria, Virginia and Brenda (Matt) Fraser of Overland Park, Kansas; four grandsons, Benjamin, Luke, and Zachary Chambers and William Fraser.  He was preceded in death by his parents, H. Orville and Pauline Dunlap and his brother-at-heart, Robert Thomas.

Services will be held at Smith Mortuary, 1415 N. Rock Road, Derby, Kansas on Wednesday, June 6, 2012 at 10:00 a.m.  Visitation will be held on Tuesday, June 5, 2012 from 1:00 to 8:00 p.m. with family present from 3:00 to 7:00 p.m.  Donations to Kansas Wildlife and Parks would be appreciated in lieu of flowers.  Online condolences may be left at www.smithfamilymortuaries.com.

(taken from the Wichita Eagle website)

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Ken Dunlap was a coach at Howard High School from 1965 to 1967.