Darren Doonan, Utilities Supervisor for Great Bend, was presented with the 2025 Water Operator Award of Excellence by Kansas Municipal Utilities. KMU is the statewide association of community-owned and operated electric, gas, water, and wastewater utilities in Kansas. Doonan was presented the award at the 2025 KMU Conference in Wichita on April 24, by Katie Miller, KMU Director of Water Services.
The KMU Water Operator Award of Excellence is given to recognize individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the municipal utility industry and their communities.
Doonan served as a firefighter for the City of Great Bend for three years before leaving briefly and returning to the City in April 2023. Because of Doonan’s enthusiasm, drive, and ability to reenergize his department, in 16 short months, he would obtain his Class 2 Water Certification and be promoted.
“Darren is a ‘go-getter,’ ensuring that projects in the queue are being pushed forward. His push moved the department into digitizing documents, improved safety standards for the crews (of which he took over as Safety Chair in January 2025), overall maintenance improvements, and the implementation of additional policies and standards for the department. Darren also implemented a digital budget tracking system and a leak detection program,” said Doonan’s supervisor.
“Darren has been a force to be reckoned with since any project that he mentions gets done. He does not procrastinate and moves forward swiftly.”
Doonan has been instrumental in providing exceptional service to his community and the utility industry of Kansas.
Kansas Municipal Utilities (KMU), based in McPherson, is the statewide association of community-owned and -operated electric, natural gas, water, wastewater, stormwater, and telecommunications utilities across Kansas. As a non-profit association established by its member utilities in 1928, KMU is dedicated to serving the needs and interests of community-owned utilities and the citizens, businesses and industries that they serve.
