Troy Steinmetz, a member of Kenyon’s Office of Campus Safety since 1995, died on June 12, 2021. He was 48 and a resident of Mount Vernon, Ohio.
Born and raised in Mount Vernon, Troy graduated from Mount Vernon High School and went on to earn an associate’s degree in criminal justice. Soon after, he joined the College’s security staff as a full-time officer.
Troy was recognized for 25 years of service to Kenyon in 2020. In the citation for the award, Todd Bell, the campus safety office’s assistant director, noted that Troy had taken on a number of roles in the office over the years, including shift supervisor, training officer and investigator, and that “in each one he has excelled in making the position better.” He added, “Troy is also known for his sense of humor; if there is anyone in campus safety who can make you laugh, it’s Troy.” Bell concluded with the observation that the office’s leaders “have an enormous amount of respect for Troy’s knowledge and decision-making skills. In the 25 years Troy has been at the College, he has shown himself to be a very valuable member of the office of campus safety and the Kenyon community.”
Troy’s abilities and talents were well known and appreciated within that community. Marc Bragin, the College’s Hillel director, Jewish chaplain, and co-director of spiritual and religious life, says he will remember Troy as a “bright and ultimately calming presence in difficult situations, a person who could see the good in others in any circumstances.”
Troy won accolades from outside the Kenyon community as well. In 2003, he received the Award for Valor of the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators for his role in defusing a situation in which students were threatened by an outsider with a gun on College property. That action also brought him the Robert Bunker Award of the Northeast Colleges and Universities Security Association.
Troy is survived by his wife, Diane (Snook) Steinmetz; three daughters, Cayla Steinmetz, Amanda Steinmetz and Adelyn Steinmetz; two grandchildren; a brother; three sisters and several nephews and nieces.
Calling hours are scheduled for Friday, June 18, from 4 to 7 p.m. at the Flowers-Snyder Funeral Home at 619 E. High St. in Mount Vernon. Memorial contributions may be made to the family to support educational opportunities for Troy’s daughters.