OTTAWA, Kan. – Melvin Robert Bauck, 81, passed away on Monday, Sept. 27, 2021, at Olathe Hospice House, Olathe, Kan. He was born July 18, 1940, to Robert and Ella (Wigger) Bauck.
He grew up in the Vassar, Kan., community and graduated from Lyndon High School, Lyndon, Kan. He received bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Emporia State University, where he was a member of Delta Pi Epsilon, a graduate fraternity for business teachers.
He began his teaching career at Welda High School, and retired from Anderson County High School, Garnett, Kan., after 43 years of teaching. He was a sponsor of the Hi-Y Club and later the Octagon Club. As sponsor of these clubs, he led numerous trips to Model Legislature at the state capitol in Topeka. He was a member of the professional development council for many years.
He was an active member of the local teachers association serving as secretary, vice-president and president. He was a member of the Kansas National Education Association and the National Education Association, and served as a state and national delegate. He was the local teachers association Teacher of the Year in 1996.
He was a member and secretary of the Garnett Public Library Board, during which time an addition was built. He was a member of the Ottawa Library Board and the AdventHealth Ottawa Auxiliary, Ottawa, Kan. He volunteered at the Franklin County Convention and Visitors Center.
He helped organize Trinity Lutheran Church, Garnett. He was a member of Faith Lutheran Church, Ottawa, where he was an organist, taught midweek and Bible classes, and was an elder for many years.
He married Carol Helmke on August 14, 1977 at Preston, Kan. After living in Garnett for many years, they moved to Ottawa in 2007.
Melvin is survived by his wife, Carol; sons, Aaron and wife, Leslie, of Birmingham, Ala., and Lyle and wife, Vanessa, of New York, N.Y.; two grandchildren, Logan (Aaron) and Charlotte (Lyle); and a sister, Berdeen Manteufel and husband, Tom, of Saint Louis, Mo.
A visitation will be 6-8 p.m. Monday, Oct. 4, at Faith Lutheran Church. Funeral services will be 2 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 5, at Faith Lutheran Church. Masks will be required at each event.
In lieu of flowers, memorials can be given to the Melvin and Carol Bauck Family Scholarship through the Emporia State University Foundation, or Faith Lutheran Church, sent in care of Feltner Funeral Home, 818 Topeka Ave., Lyndon, KS 66451. Condolences can be left at feltnerfuneralhome.com.
