Dioane Gates | Teacher

Three words that describe KLC Field Team member Dioane Gates are encouraging, pioneering, and entrepreneurial.

Dioane pastors Mending Place, a church that he founded with his wife Heather in 2009. Mending Place is a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural expression of his deep belief in the intrinsic benefit of diversity in the local church and communities of faith.

After taking the “scenic view” of postsecondary education, he graduated in 2008 with his bachelor’s in business. A native of Wichita, Dioane is a proud alumnus of a university less than a mile from where he grew up. He enjoys donning the Wichita State yellow and black, especially when he travels.

Dioane recently finished a career with the Sedgwick Co Sheriff’s Office as a commissioned deputy from 2001-2018. He finds satisfaction in continuing to train law enforcement officers and other first responders on the necessity of spiritual resiliency. Equally fulfilling are the visioning and team-building sessions he conducts for local pastors and their leadership teams. At the same time, Dioane is a small business owner who leverages that experience – and a reputation for being able to make the otherwise complex simple – to deliver team building and quality training to other local businesses.

Dioane is stirred by learning, teaching, and practicing leadership. Some of his greatest teachers have been Heather and their three children, sons Isaiah and Elijah and daughter Malone. He finds relaxation in drinking good espresso and yelling at the TV during Dallas Cowboys games.