Kenneth M. Kennedy Jr., 88, of Prairie Village, Kan., died Monday, May 11, 2015. Visitation will be from 9-10 a.m., and funeral following at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 16, at Porter Funeral Home, 1835 Minnesota Ave., Kansas City, KS 66102. Burial will be in Pleasanton, Kan., on Monday, May 18 at 10:30 a.m. Memorial contributions may be made to Grinter Chapel United Methodist Church, Kansas City, Kan., where he was a member for over 50 years.
Kenneth was born Feb. 15, 1927, to Myrl and Esther (Harmon) Kennedy in Kansas City, Mo. At age 2, he moved to the family farm outside Pleasanton, Linn County, Kan., homesteaded by his great-grandfather John Quincy Kennedy. He graduated from Pleasanton High School and Fort Scott Community College, after which he moved to Kansas City, Kan. In Kansas City, he drove a taxi, and worked for Riverview Bank before joining Santa Fe Railroad. He retired in 1990 as a railway clerk after 34 years of service. Kenney served in the Kansas National Guard. He was a member of Brotherhood of Railway Clerks #121.
Kenney joined the Oxford Fellowship group in the early 1950s, where he met his future wife, Reta N. (Boyd) Kennedy. They were married on Sept. 3, 1960. In 1961 they moved to the Turner neighborhood of KCK where they raised two children, and enjoyed gardening and traveling together for many years. Kenney was very considerate of those less fortunate, and collected thousands of aluminum cans, volunteered, and raised funds for Cross-Lines and Youthville.
He is survived by his wife of 54 years, Reta N. Kennedy; two children, Gayle K. Callahan (Mike), Prairie Village, and Warren B. Kennedy (Gisela), Bonner Springs, Kan.; sister, Wilma Stark (Dale), Wichita, Kan.; and three grandchildren, Connor Callahan, Cameron Kennedy and Brianne Kennedy.
Condolences may be expressed at www.porterfuneralhome.com. Arrangements: Porter Funeral Home & Crematory, 1835 Minnesota Ave., Kansas City, KS, (913) 621-6400.
OBITUARIES
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]
Kelly Kehl ~ 03-25-1938 to 06-28-2025

Linn County News Published July 2, 2025 Kelly Kehl, age 87, of Mound City, Kan., passed away Saturday, June 28, 2025, at his rural Mound City home. Kelly was born March 25, 1938, south of Parker, Kan., to Keith (Tom) Emerson Kehl and Helen Edith (Giffin) Kehl. Kelly... [More]
More Obituaries
- 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
- Windfred Allen DeMott ~ 09-15-1940 to 06-07-2025
NEWS
Commissioners discuss various budgets

SEKMHC in mix At the end of a meeting attended by two of the three commissioners, a discussion was held regarding several of the proposed budgets for next year. Commissioners Alison Hamilton and Jim Johnson first discussed the proposed budget for Southeast Kansas Mental Health.... [More]
City learns of fire gear condition

Pleasanton Fire Department ISO inspection July 16 Following the appointment of new Fire Chief Jimmy Watts as Pleasanton Fire Chief, the Pleasanton Council heard of the condition of bunker gear Monday night at their bi-weekly meeting. Watts reported the truck ran with the... [More]
La Cygne leaders discuss food truck follow-up

Police chief to draft updated clarifying ordinance La Cygne leaders anticipate considering a draft ordinance soon on transient food trucks following discussion at last Wednesday’s regular council meeting precipitated by a local business owner’s complaint last month.... [More]
More News
- 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
- Commissioners discuss development zoning appeals
- Questions on employee emails leads to lengthy discussion
- NOTICE:
- Tanglewood Lakes files suit against Board of County Commissioners
SPORTS
Nobodys wins Blue Mound co-ed softball tournament

The team called Nobodys wins the Blue Mound 4th of July co-ed softball tournament on July 5. This year the tournament consisted of eight teams. The Nobodys is Keith Morrell’s team and has been a part of the softball tournament since it started three years ago.
Pleasanton 12-14 baseball wins championship

The Pleasanton 12-14 baseball team wins their league tournament on June 30 to July 1. Pleasanton hosted the tournament and won in the championship against La Cygne 11-7.
More Sports
- 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
- Pleasanton and Jayhawk baseball on the 2025 All TRL team
- Jayhawk Linn softball has three All TRL unanimous selections
- Trenton Broyles leads Hawks at State track
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Call Barbara at 913-352-6235 or e-mail linncountynewsreporter@gmail.com

