Linn County News
Published April 14, 2021
Cecil L. Fish, 89, Ottawa, Kan., and former longtime Labette County resident, passed away Thursday, April 8, 2021, at his home.
Cecil was born the third child to Cecil Paige and Edna (Nickoley) Fish on Dec. 7, 1931, in Pawhuska, Okla. He grew up in Mound Valley, Kan., attended school there and graduated in 1949. In 1951 he graduated from Coffeyville Community College.
He joined the U.S. Air Force in 1952 and served four years. During his service he attended various electronics schools in Belleville, Ill., and was eventually assigned to Haneda Air Force Base in Tokyo, Japan, as an airborne radio mechanic. During his service in Japan, he traveled to numerous locations in the Far East including Korea, Okinawa, Guam, the Philippine Islands, Formosa (Taiwan) and Siam (Thailand). Upon returning to the United States, he was assigned to the strategic air command at Carswell Air Force Base in Fort Worth, Texas, and was later transferred on temporary assignment to the Nouasseur Air Force Base near Casablanca in North Africa. During his tour in North Africa, he very much enjoyed his visits to Spain and the Rock of Gibraltar. After his discharge from the USAF in 1956, he returned to southeast Kansas and entered Kansas State Teachers College (KSTC) in Pittsburg, Kan. During this time, he met his future wife, Bonnie May Greenlee, at a Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) dance in Oswego, Kan. He asked her to marry him on their first date. She thought he was bluffing! They married May 1, 1957.
After a semester at KSTC he accepted a position as communications craftsman with the American Telephone and Telegraph Co. (AT&T) in June of 1956. He worked in Wichita, Kan., for approximately six years. During this time he and Bonnie welcomed the birth of daughters Kelly in 1958, Joni in 1959 and Dixie in 1962.
In 1962, Cecil was promoted to operations supervisor at La Cygne, Kan., and the family moved to Pleasanton. He received additional promotions with AT&T, and the family moved from Pleasanton, to Kansas City, back to Pleasanton, to Hiawatha, and back to Kansas City. He retired in 1984 after almost 30 years with the company.
In retirement, he and Bonnie returned to southeast Kansas building homes first near Big Hill Lake and later in Altamont. He continued working as personnel manager and purchasing agent for Gragg Cabinet Co. in Cherryvale and later served for eight years as a Labette County Commissioner, followed by five years as an Altamont City Commissioner. In 2006, Cecil and Bonnie moved to Baldwin City, Kan., to be closer to family, and in 2017 they moved to Ottawa and built a home there.
Cecil is preceded in death by his parents; and sisters, Wilma, Norma and Donna. He is survived by his wife, Bonnie, of the home; daughters, Kelly Fish-Greenlee (Phil Crabb), Joni Fish-Gertz (Bruce Gertz) and Dixie Fish-Richard (Gerald Richard); four grandchildren, Katie, Leland, Micah and Jonah; and seven great-grandchildren.
A short interment service for extended family will be held Friday morning, April 16, 2021, followed by a public Celebration of Life event at the Dennis Community Center. Lunch and libation will be served at 1 p.m. Family and friends are all encouraged to attend and share their favorite experiences with, and stories about, our beloved Cecil. The family looks forward to engaging in a light-hearted celebration of Cecil. Masks are required.
Memorial contributions may be made to Ives Chapel, United Methodist Church, Baldwin City, Kan.; Mound Valley Christian Church, Mound Valley, Kan.; or Bible Holiness Church, Oswego, Kan. These may be left at or mailed to Forbes-Hoffman Funeral Home, P.O. Box 374, Parsons, KS 67357. Online condolences may be left at www.forbeshoffman.com.
OBITUARIES
Burton Clyde Brownback ~ 05-21-1953 to 07-13-2025

Linn County News Published July 16, 2025 Burton Clyde Brownback, age 72, Tri-Ko resident in Osawatomie, Kan., passed away Sunday, July 13, 2025. He was born on May 21, 1953, in Kansas City, Mo., the son of Clyde and Shirley Drake Brownback. He graduated from Prairie View... [More]
Ruth Ann Antrim ~ 05-21-1951 to 07-07-2025

Linn County News Published July 16, 2025 Ruth Ann Antrim, formerly Hueston, passed away July 7, 2025, after bravely battling cancer for many years. Ruth Ann was 74 years old. She lived and worked in the Mound City and Fort Scott, Kan., areas her... [More]
Helen Maxine Wright ~ 05-28-1939 to 06-19-2025

Linn County News Published July 16, 2025 Helen Maxine Wright, age 86, formerly of Blue Mound, Kan., passed away at her home in Abbyville, Kan., on Thursday, June 19, 2025. Funeral service was held at 11 a.m., Monday, July 7, 2025, at the Community... [More]
More Obituaries
- Kelly Kehl ~ 03-25-1938 to 06-28-2025
- Kandi Kay Cruse ~ 03-29-1958 to 06-27-2025
- Jessica Cae Pritchett ~ 08-30-1981 to 06-26-2025
- Jackie Junior “Jack” Hewitt ~ 07-17-1935 to 06-18-2025
- Priscilla “Pat” Haney Smith ~ 11-19-1935 to 06-07-2025
- Ron Arbogast ~ 08-31-1946 to 06-05-2025
- Richard “Dick” Smith ~ 04-18-1942 to 06-22-2025
- Charles Edwin Sutterby ~ 06-20-1951 to 06-19-2025
NEWS
SPECIAL: Resurfacing on U.S. 59 in Anderson County to begin in August 4

A Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) resurfacing project on U.S. 59 in Anderson County is scheduled to begin the week of August 4. The project will resurface 15 miles of U.S. 59 using a hot-mix asphalt overlay, beginning at the Allen/Anderson... [More]
Commissioners vote to exceed revenue neutral

Set public hearing for Aug. 25 Near the end of the July 14 meeting, the Linn County Commissioners opened a discussion on the 2026 proposed budget with Commissioner Jim Johnson attending only this portion of the meeting via telephone and budget consultant Scot Loyd... [More]
Mulberry Limestone CUP approved by P & Z

A conditional use permit to form a rock quarry at 2400 and Valley Roads in March of 2024 has once again come before the Linn County Planning & Zoning Commission Tuesday night. The quarry, projected to be 48 acres to produce high-grade limestone qualified for use in both... [More]
More News
- SPECIAL: Benefits question an issue for county employees
- Commissioners discuss various budgets
- City learns of fire gear condition
- La Cygne leaders discuss food truck follow-up
- special: SCOTUS agrees to hear Women's Sports Case
- SPECIA;: Schmidt Votes to Cancel Massive Tax Hike, Secure Border, and Lower Federal Spending
- NOTICE:
- Pleasanton awarded $617,000 KDOT street grant
SPORTS
Pleasanton trapshooting team shows grit at National Championship

Eight members of the Pleasanton Trapshooting Team traveled to Mason, Mich., last week to compete in the USA Clay Target League National Championship. Five members participated in the team event, and all eight competed individually. The team was among 264 qualified teams competing... [More]
Blue Mound softball earns second place at Crest

The Blue Mound girls’ coach pitch team 1 places second at the TRL girls’ coach pitch tournament at Colony. The tournament took place from July 7 to July 9.
More Sports
- Nobodys wins Blue Mound co-ed softball tournament
- Pleasanton 12-14 baseball wins championship
- Gratton at Nationals
- Summer Ball Tournaments
- Summer Ball Tournaments
- Pleasanton/Jayhawk trapshooting team places seventh at State, Wallace earns State championship
- Joey Ewalt impacting youth wrestling here and abroad
- Prairie View trapshooting competes at State
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• May be mailed, e-mailed, faxed or hand delivered.
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Call Barbara at 913-352-6235 or e-mail linncountynewsreporter@gmail.com

