In this 2017 photo, during a McRaith Catholic Center staff gathering in the office workroom, Bill Blincoe presents Mark Vollman with a football signed by University of Kentucky athletes, as Mike Bogdan looks on. FILE PHOTO / LAURA RIGSBY | WKC

BY ELIZABETH WONG BARNSTEAD, THE WESTERN KENTUCKY CATHOLIC

On Sept. 22, 2025, the staff of the McRaith Catholic Center lost a longtime friend who was known beyond the Diocese of Owensboro’s pastoral center as a dedicated altar server for the annual Chrism Mass: Mark Vollman.

“He had a big heart,” said Elaine Thomas of Vollman, who was born with Down Syndrome in 1960 and had worked for decades at the MCC. “When anyone in the pastoral center was sad, maybe a loved one was sick or had died, he’d give them a big hug and ask if he could pray for them.”

He had a way of getting to know people, said Thomas, who retired from her role in diocesan administration in 2024.

While being involved with the Special Olympics and Boy Scouts of America – from whom Vollman achieved the rank of Eagle Scout – he also served in custodial roles at the pastoral center, which provided him with ample opportunities to do one of his favorite activities: socializing.

“Every day when he emptied our trash, it came with a big hug and an ‘I love you,’” said Tom Lilly, the diocese’s chancellor. “He was a special gift to the people who worked with him.”

Karen Jarboe, who retired from the diocesan Catholic Schools Office in 2015, said Vollman had a strong friendship with the late Bishop John J. McRaith, and the late chancellor, Sr. Joseph Angela Boone, OSU.

He also had a way of winning over anyone he encountered: “Mark named me ‘Pretty Eyes,’” Jarboe chuckled, adding that “that feeling he gave to everyone – he was just somebody special.”

Louanne Seibert, the director of the diocese’s tribunal, said one of her most prominent memories of Vollman was during the painful period of grief that followed her mother passing away.

“Mark could see that I was struggling,” said Seibert. Vollman “ordered me – as only Mark could do – to sit down and bow my head. He placed his hand on my head, reached his other hand high above his head, and said the most heartfelt, powerful and reflective prayer for me,” she said.

Seibert said that at that moment, she felt “especially that Mark had a direct line to God’s ear and the Holy Spirit was coming through his hands. It brought me great comfort.”

In this undated photo, Mark Vollman (left) is seen with Fr. Joe Mills, who founded the Diocese of Owensboro’s tribunal. FILE PHOTO

Ernie Taliaferro, who retired as the diocese’s CFO in 2017, often took Vollman to Owensboro Catholic High School’s Friday night football games, since Vollman was the self-described Aces #1 fan. Taliaferro said Bill Blincoe, the diocese’s director of project and risk management, also regularly helped to bring Vollman to the games.

Gates Settle, the former principal of OCHS, said everyone was accustomed to seeing Vollman on the sidelines, including the football players themselves: “He was always a fixture down at the home games.”

Taliaferro said Vollman’s “fixture” status spread, whether from Aces games, meeting him at the pastoral center, or seeing Vollman altar serve at the annual Chrism Mass.

Vollman served at that liturgy for many years, and after he experienced a stroke that limited his physical abilities, he participated from his wheelchair.

Yet Taliaferro said the stroke did not stop Vollman’s wit or love of fellowship. Even when he could no longer carry out his custodial tasks, he would still come to the pastoral center to visit his friends.

Taliaferro said an especially close friend was Mike Bogdan, the diocese’s director of music, who died in early 2025.

“Mike was his best buddy,” said Taliaferro, adding that Bogdan famously curated a list of “Markisms,” such as “Are you busy, or not busy?” as an invitation to hang out and chat, regardless of the other’s actual busyness.

Over the past few years, as his mobility became more limited and his health declined, Vollman resided at Wendell Foster, a multi-service agency in Owensboro that serves people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. There, he was cared for with great support and love by staff and fellow residents alike.

He passed away at age 64, and was preceded in death by his parents Bob and Mary Vollman. He is survived by his brother Mike (Vickie) Vollman and niece Kristan (Richard) Higgs, and great-nephew Oliver. Expressions of sympathy may take the form of contributions to Special Olympics of Daviess County or Wendell Foster in his memory.

In this January 2020 photo, Mark Vollman (center) poses for a silly picture with McRaith Catholic Center friends Charlie Hardesty, director of youth and young adult ministry, and Robin Tomes, administrative assistant for youth and young adult ministry and faith formation. FILE PHOTO

Originally printed in the November 2025 issue of The Western Kentucky Catholic.