Assistant Campus Safety Director Kim Bryant Lundy, whose survivor-centered work with the Occidental community left an indelible mark, died Oct. 22. She was 68 years old.
Her daughter, Autumn Lundy, 25, said her death was caused by complications from cancer.
Kim Lundy was born Jan. 4, 1955 in Chicago, Illinois and moved with her family to LA as a baby. Kim Lundy’s work in law enforcement followed a tradition begun by her parents; her dad served as a highway patrol officer and her mom answered calls for the Sheriff’s department, according to Autumn Lundy and her sister, Amber Lundy, 29.
“She was always really passionate about helping people,” Autumn Lundy said.
Campus Safety Director Rick Tanksley announced Kim Lundy’s death to the Occidental community in an Oct. 26 email. According to the email, Kim Lundy served 25 years in the Montebello Police Department, achieving the rank of sergeant.
“[Kim Lundy] conducted a number of complex investigations, everything from homicide to sex crimes,” Tanskley said in the email.
According to Autumn Lundy, Kim Lundy not only had a passion for helping sexual assault victims, but also worked with gang crime units.
“She was really passionate about getting to know gang members on a deeper level, always trying to understand how they ended up where they were and what they felt like they needed in order to get out,” Autumn Lundy said.
Autumn Lundy said that after retiring from the police department, Kim Lundy wanted to continue helping people and loved being around students. Before coming to Occidental, Kim Lundy taught Drug Abuse Resistance Education to sixth grade students and she also enjoyed training officers in the academy, Autumn Lundy said.
Tanksley said he hired Kim Lundy in 2019 after the position of Assistant Campus Safety Director was created.
“She had a lot of contacts in the area, which I felt would be a benefit to the college. She spoke passionately about working in an educational environment,” Tanksley said.
Tanskley said Kim Lundy’s main role was to oversee the day-to-day operations of Campus Safety. She was also a member of Occidental’s Care Team, led RA safety trainings at the beginning of the year and collaborated with Tanksley on last year’s Run, Hide, Fight trainings, according to Tanksley.
Amber Lundy said that her mother was always excited to tell Amber and her sister about her involvement on campus with affinity alliances like LGBTQIA+ groups.
“My mom was very open to learning about different things, and she was really excited to support the students that were within that community on campus,” Amber Lundy said. “I think that has to do with the fact that I was queer, so she’d always come home and be like, ‘Amber, I’m helping your community.’”
Tanksley said that he and Kim Lundy worked very closely and shared a bond over their law enforcement experience.
“She confided in me that she was having some health issues,” Tanksley said. “I knew there were days that she was really struggling. But she came to work because she felt a commitment to the college and to the [Campus Safety] department.”
According to Project SAFE Survivor Advocate and Programs Coordinator Stephani Candelaria, Kim Lundy coordinated Project SAFE training for all new Campus Safety personnel last year. Candelaria said that Kim Lundy focused on teaching personnel how to be survivor-centered when working with students in crisis or with students who have experienced some kind of violent assault.
“Kim was our main point person at Campus Safety, specifically around connecting us with the local police department,” Candelaria said. “Kim was really dedicated to finding a solution for the ongoing Peeping Tom issue on our campus.”
Kim Lundy would do a final drive through campus after her shift was over to ensure that there was nobody lurking around, Candelaria said.
“She also did a lot of work to connect with off-campus residents who are concerned about Peeping Toms, because Campus Safety can’t always respond to off-campus residents,” Candelaria said.
According to Candelaria, Kim Lundy always offered a listening ear and support to anyone who was working with Campus Safety.
“She very much resonated with and held compassion and space for survivors, particularly of sexual violence,” Candelaria said.
Amber Lundy said her mother would go out of her way to make it a priority to provide solace, comfort and advice to anyone who was facing adversity.
“She was always very personal with the students on a really compassionate level, just always trying to make sure they were good mentally and that they felt safe,” Amber Lundy said.
Tanksley said that Kim Lundy would call individuals back to check on them after a report had been made, such as witnesses of the Peeping Tom incidents.
“Kim wanted people to know that we’re still here. If there’s anything you needed, she was there to talk with you,” Tanksley said. “And she had that skill to connect. Not everybody can do that effectively, but she was good at that, and that’s something I’m going to miss desperately.”
According to Candelaria, Campus Safety does not always feel like a safe space for everyone, and Kim Lundy was committed to changing that.
“In the way that she spoke with students and took those calls very seriously, which unfortunately we don’t always see in our larger society of law enforcement, she was really committed to changing that culture here at Oxy,” Candelaria said.
Tanksley said Kim Lundy loved life and loved going out to restaurants and sharing her recommendations with the Campus Safety department. According to Autumn Lundy, Kim Lundy loved to eat but could not cook very well, just learning how to salt foods at home last year.
Autumn Lundy said her mother’s biggest hobby was reading and often shared book recommendations with others.
Candelaria said Kim Lundy led a social-justice themed book club with other staff members on campus.
“I know a lot of folks were really touched and moved by her [book] choices and the discussions they would have with her,” Candelaria said.
According to Candelaria, Kim Lundy often took in stray kittens from the Occidental campus and made sure they were warm and fed before finding someone who could foster or adopt them.
“It just shows what a big heart she had for every living thing on campus, including the little stray kittens that she took into the Campus Safety office,” Candelaria said.
Autumn Lundy said she and Amber recently found a huge box of thank you letters sent to their mother while sorting through her belongings.
“These were letters that have been written to her throughout her life from sixth graders that she taught D.A.R.E. to all the way up to officers that she worked with when she retired,” Autumn Lundy said. “My mom wasn’t open about her own praises, so this was our first time seeing how so many people have given [Kim Lundy] her flowers throughout her life.”
Tanskley said that Kim Lundy had opened up her family to him personally, introducing him to her daughters.
“I’m really going to miss her but I just know that the Campus Safety department and I and my family are better for having known Kim Lundy because she was a special individual,” Tanksley said.
Autumn Lundy said Kim Lundy was always humble and made it a priority to put kindness and compassion at the forefront of her life. Amber Lundy said her mother’s death has helped her realize how much it matters how you treat people while you’re alive.
“That impact does matter,” Amber Lundy said. “We’re very much experiencing the impact that she left in so many people’s lives.”
Contact Ava LaLonde at lalonde@oxy.edu
