Sheriff Mark Owen
Sheriff Mark Owen, 70
Mark never outgrew his boyhood desire to go into law enforcement. Following a tour with the Marines and brief stints with the KC Fire Department, the Weatherby Lake PD and the Parkville PD, he joined the Platte County Sheriff’s Department in 1979 and worked his way up through the ranks. Mark was elected Platte County Sheriff in 2012 and will retire at the end of this year. He has been awarded the prestigious Clarence Kelly Award and the Mid-American Regional Leadership Award. He is president of the Kansas City Metro Squad Board and is a leader or has led several other regional law enforcement boards. Mark is also the founder and president of the Platte County Sheriff Department’s Children’s Foundation. He applied for a grant for the Shop with a Deputy program early in his career, and the program continues to this day, serving 40 children in 2023. Mark says he lives by three rules: don’t lie, do a full day’s work for a full day’s pay, and go out and have fun.