Linn County News
Published Aug. 18, 2021
Our beloved Charline Louise Klopfenstein left us far too soon. Peacefully, on Monday, Aug. 9, 2021, she went to be with our Lord. Our lives are richer because she was a part of us; she will be greatly missed.
Charline was born June 19, 1936, to Charles and Aline Eichelberger in Pueblo, Colo. She married Willis Eugene Klopfenstein on May 25, 1958. Will died in an accident in 1984; Charline never stopped longing for him. Now they will always be together.
Starting at a young age, Charline worked in her family’s greenhouse, learning the business of raising and marketing plants and her flower arrangements. Later she joined the U.S. Treasury Department where she was employed in both Denver and Kansas City.
When she and Will moved back to his hometown, they made their home on the Klopfenstein farm northeast of Pleasanton. Their house burnt one night when they were at a school basketball game. Charline always spoke fondly of how her adopted community helped them in the dark days following that tragedy. They made their new home in a building Will had erected on the property; Charline continued to live there with all her fond memories her entire life until just this past May.
She gave up working outside the home when she and Will started their family. She continued to give to the Pleasanton community as a leader of the local Girl Scout troop and as a member of the First Christian Church. Along with Stephen Johnson and Kenton Bell, she played a major role in designing and installing the Civil War scenes that are still on display at the Linn County Historical Museum.
She joined the staff of the Pleasanton School District in the late 1970s as assistant librarian in both the junior high/high school and the elementary school. An excellent listener and a kind friend, she enriched many lives, both adults and children.
Her biggest regret was that she had no formal education beyond the eighth grade; as an adult she earned her GED. Anyone who knew her, however, would attest that she was far smarter and more talented than any degree could have made her. Far too modest to admit it, Charline was a gifted artist who never hesitated to lend her skills to anyone who needed them. Her self-learned knowledge of nature and her willingness to share that knowledge drew many people to seek her help. Her story of raising and taming a pair of orphaned possum joeys was just one example of the diverse relationships she had with wild and domesticated animals; she taught many Girl Scouts the joy of making hollyhock ladies and other magical nature projects. Her love of reading led her from Smithsonian Magazine to most of the children’s books in the school library to news feeds on the computer. Life never left Charline behind.
Now she is with her parents and her husband Will. Left to give testimony of the impact she made on our lives are daughters Karen Reynolds (Mark) of Ottawa, Kan., and Jeni Klopfenstein (Rob) of Joplin, Mo.; sisters Marguerite Sieggen of Golden, Colo., Marie Eichelberger of Pueblo, Colo., and Frances Marshall of Westerville, Ohio; grandchildren Stormi Potts (Wyatt), Hunter Potts (Taylor), Hannah Monholland (Berry), Cameron Reynolds (Brooklyn), Taylor Reynolds, and Brandon Reynolds; niece Fawn Brunn (Carrie); nephew Bowen Marshall (Tyler); cousin Michael Beck; and many more family and friends who are better people for having known Charline.
We promised you we would be brave like you. But we are broken. We know you are no longer suffering from the pain in your body or the frustration of what your life had become; we are crying for ourselves, how lost we will be without you. Be at peace, Mama; we’ll see you again one day.
Donations may be made in remembrance of Charline to Angels Care Home Health, 318 S. Main, Ottawa, Kan. 66067.
OBITUARIES
Jean Driskell ~ 03-22-1943 to 07-18-2025

Linn County News Published July 23, 2025 Jean Driskell, age 82, formerly of La Cygne, Kan., passed away Friday, July 18, 2025. Memorial service will be held 7 p.m. Thursday, July 24, 2025, at the Schneider Funeral Home, La Cygne Chapel. Visitation... [More]
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]
More Obituaries
- Helen Maxine Wright ~ 05-28-1939 to 06-19-2025
- 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
NEWS
Special: Resurfacing to begin on U.S. 69 in Linn County

A Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) resurfacing project on U.S. 69 in Linn County will begin the week of July 28. The project will resurface U.S. 69 with ultrathin bonded asphalt for just over 7 miles from Pleasanton to just north of... [More]
Pleasanton FD again at center of heated discussion

The majority of heated discussion came at the end of the Pleasanton City Council meeting Monday night during council discussion when Council people Bill Skipper and Angelina Randall squared off concerning the recent ISO inspection that occurred at the fire department. Skipper... [More]
La Cygne city to be below revenue neutral

Ad valorem revenue will decrease by almost $16,600, levy by over 7.6 mills The city of La Cygne will not only be revenue neutral but actually below neutral on its 2026 municipal budget. That was the report from Jodi Wade, city clerk, at last Wednesday’s regular... [More]
More News
- USD 362 files revenue-neutral exceedances
- Commissioners discuss airport future, request more information
- SPECIAL: Resurfacing on U.S. 59 in Anderson County to begin in August 4
- Commissioners vote to exceed revenue neutral
- Mulberry Limestone CUP approved by P & Z
- SPECIAL: Benefits question an issue for county employees
- Commissioners discuss various budgets
- City learns of fire gear condition
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
OBITUARIES POLICY
• May be mailed, e-mailed, faxed or hand delivered.
• Must be received by 9 a.m. on Tuesday morning in order to appear in that week's edition.
• Obituaries submitted by funeral homes will be billed to the funeral home.
• Full obituaries submitted by individuals are required to be paid in advance.
• Cost: $40 for 300 words or less. Each additional word over 300, 10¢. Photograph $5.
Call Barbara at 913-352-6235 or e-mail linncountynewsreporter@gmail.com

