Glennace Mowry Kirn was born July 2, 1929, on a farm north of Gorham, KS, to Floyd Albert and Mary Josephine (Frank) Mowry. She passed away May 26, 2022. When she was three years old, the family moved to a farm southwest of Plainville, KS, where she grew up and attended Windy Ridge rural school.
She graduated as co-valedictorian from Plainville High School with the class of 1947. She then moved to Salina where she attended Brown-Mackie School of Business, graduating from the Executive Secretarial Class. While in school, she worked part time at Gebhart Hardware Store, Salina, until graduation at which time she became employed in the office of Southwestern Bell Telephone Company, becoming secretary to the District Plant Superintendent.
On August 11, 1951, she was united in marriage to Ralph Maurice Kirn of Solomon at the old Sacred Heart Cathedral in Salina. To this union, one son, Larry Joseph, and four daughters, Linda Marie, Cynthia Anne, Rebecca Louise and Julia Elaine were born. At the time of their marriage, they moved to a farm southeast of Minneapolis where Ralph farmed and raised sheep. When Romer of KS opened in March 1960, Ralph became the first plant superintendent and the family moved into Minneapolis in December of that year.
Glennace was a stay-at-home mother until she took employment with the Minneapolis Messenger in the fall of 1967. In 1972, she became the Minneapolis Grade School secretary, a job she held for 22 years, retiring in 1994. With the assistance of many others, she was the founding director of Love INC (In the Name of Christ) of Ottawa County, a most fulfilling job she held for 13 years, retiring at the age of 80 on August 5, 2009. She was also a member of the Catholic Church all of her life; the governing board of Central Kansas Mental Health Center for 25 years; the Ottawa County Ministerial Association for 20 years, the Ottawa County Mental Health Education Committee, the Ottawa County Health Planning Commission, the Ottawa County Democrats, and other boards. In 2007, she was awarded the local Chamber of Commerce Community Service Award and in 2009 was awarded the Volunteer Hero of the year for an 18-county area by the American Red Cross.
She is survived by her son, Larry (Josh Rabinowitz); daughters, Linda Hardy, Cindy Huth (Jeff), Becky Gassman (Dennis) and Julie Kirn (Bill Kuhn); grandchildren, Maxwell, Aaron, Dylan, Devon, Mindy, Micah, Missy, Michaela, Tanner, Trayer, Diane, Greg and Hannah; and eleven great-grandchildren.
Preceding her in death were
her parents, her husband, a sister, Verna Bice, a brother, Ralph Mowry,
and many aunts, cousins, nieces and nephews.
Visitation will be at Wilson
Family Funeral Home, Minneapolis, on Tuesday, May 31, from 2:00 P.M. to
6:00 P.M. with family receiving friends from 4:00 P.M. to 6:00 P.M.
with the Rosary set to begin at 6:00 P.M. Funeral Mass will be at 10:00
A.M., Wednesday, June 1, at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church,
Minneapolis, with Father Mark Wesely. Internment will be held at
Highland Cemetery at a later date.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Ottawa County Love INC, Central Kansas Mental Health Center or Catholic Charities and left in care of Wilson Family Funeral Home, P.O. Box 166, Minneapolis, KS 67467.