Linn County News
Published Sept. 20, 2017
Lura Jean (Wilson) Zinn, age 82 of Hume, Mo., died Sunday, Sept. 17, 2017, at Prescott Country View Nursing Home in Prescott, Kan. She was born Aug. 21, 1935, to Zella Mae Gregg Wilson and Earl DeVoe Wilson in Metz, Mo., the youngest of six children.
Jean attended several small schools in the Metz/Horton area and eventually the family moved to Nevada, Mo., where she completed her education, graduating from Nevada High School in 1953. During the summer before her final year of high school she was introduced to her future husband Willis Albert Zinn Jr. by her older brother Leroy at a weekend dance at Radio Springs Park. Willis insisted they wait to be married until she turned 18. They were united in marriage on Sept. 6, 1953, two weeks after her birthday.
Jean worked for a short time with Farm Bureau as office support/bookkeeper. Two years into the marriage their first child was born. Jean then began to work part-time for the lumberyard Willis managed. When Willis started working for the FAA as an air route traffic controller, Jean became a full-time wife and mother.
They had three girls stair-stepped two years apart. This began Jean’s career as a Girl Scouts leader and council volunteer. She started as a Brownie Troop Leader with her oldest daughter Cathy in 1962 and continued even after her youngest daughter Karen had completed her time in scouting. Jean was a troop leader for each of her girls as well as volunteering at the council level for many years. Her favorite times were the council-wide trips she organized, taking girls to see various places. The two major trips were to Mexico City, Mexico, to the Girl Scout World Center and a trip to Washington, D.C., for the national Girl Scout center. In 1980 she retired from active scouting and became a Lifetime Member of the Girl Scouts.
At this point she and Willis began their retirement careers as “gypsies.” Jean celebrated her 60th birthday in Hawaii with her middle daughter Pam. She had made it to all 50 states. She and Willis spent at least three months each winter in Florida, many summers in Alaska, trips to New England to see fall foliage and trips to California to see one of their daughters. In 1993 they made a point of visiting all four corners of the U.S.
Her favorite activities included playing dominos, doing word search puzzles, reading and playing cards, but most of all caring for her family. In addition to being a Lifetime Member of the Girl Scouts, she was a member of the Hume Methodist Church and the Hume Garden Club.
Jean is survived by three daughters, Cathy Thurow and husband Larry of Monticello, Ill., Pamela “Pam” Yarick and husband Meredith of Hume, Mo., and Karen McClure and husband Tom of Bloomington, Ill.; five grandchildren, Heather Kibbler and husband Sam, Ian Thurow, Kimberly Yarick, Brook Appleby and husband Aaron, and Bill McClure; many nephews; two brothers, Leroy Wilson and H.D. Wilson; one sister, Linda Byrns; and nieces, great-nephews and great-nieces.
She was preceded in death by her parents; husband Willis (in 2013); one sister, Emily Bird; one brother, Orton Wilson; and one grandson, Matthew Yarick.
Funeral service will be held 10:30 a.m. Friday, Sept. 22, 2017, at the Hume United Methodist Church. Burial will be held at 1:30 p.m. Friday at the Fort Scott National Cemetery. Visitation will be held from 5-7 p.m. Thursday at the church.
The family suggests contributions to the Hume United Methodist Church or Prescott Country View. Online condolences for the family can be left at www.schneiderfuneralscom. Arrangements: Schneider Funeral Home and Crematory Pleasanton Chapel.
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: Benefits question an issue for county employees

A poll sent to Linn County employees mid-week asking which benefit they would prefer to lose has created a spark of animosity among those who received it. One person anonymously shared it to a Mound City-oriented Facebook page as a screen shot along with their comments highlighting... [More]
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

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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
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- 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

