High school administrator dies in Cherry Creek Reservoir boat accident

DENVER — After a three-day search for a boater who went missing at Cherry Creek Reservoir on Saturday, crews were able to pull a body from the water shortly after 10 a.m. Monday.

The victim is Todd Vogel, assistant principal at Chaparral High School in Douglas County.

Todd Vogel, Chaparral H.S. assistant principal

Chaparral Principal Ron Peterson says Todd was highly respected, a deeply knowledgeable administrator. Simply, he was irreplaceable. “He was the guy who would take all of these ideas and he would make it happen.  He was the glue,” Peterson said.

“Todd was also a great family man,”  says Douglas County Schools spokesman Randy Barber. “We send our deepest sympathies to his wife and four children. They are part of the Douglas County family.”

Vogel oversaw the counseling department, Advanced Placement testing, budgeting, scheduling and Back to School Night. He was assistant principal at Chaparral for the last four years. He worked at Grandview High School before that.

According to witnesses, Vogel went under the water at the south end of the reservoir on Saturday night when trying to loosen a stubborn anchor on a boat.

South metro firefighters and park rangers began their search as the sun was setting Saturday. On Sunday, crews fanned out in the reservoir once again, searching with sonar equipment. Both searches failed to discover the missing man.

The south portion of the reservoir was closed during the course of the weekend’s search, but reopened Monday despite crews continuing their rescue attempts.