Marianne Winkel

Marianne McMann Winkel was born July 8, 1930 in Beloit, Kansas, the daughter of Thomas Frank McMann and Mary Pearl Hutton. She died Tuesday, March 26, 2019 at the Mercy Hospital in Moundridge, Kansas at the age of 88.

She grew up 4 miles north of Beloit, and had one brother Lyle, who was 13 years older than her. She attended country schools in Prairie Grove, Mulberry, and Number 1, and later attended Beloit High School, where she graduated with the class of 1948. She stayed in town with her Aunt Nellie and Uncle Frank Starkey, and walked 1 ½ miles to school each way. She was very proud of her Beloit High School, and would listen to events on the radio. Her granddaughter Brittany was a Beloit Trojan as well, and she loved going to any event she was in, whether it was orchestra or cross country.

Marianne got her start in teaching when a one room school she had attended needed a teacher. Her mother Mary said she would be at school as the adult while Marianne did the teaching. In those days, it was not uncommon for the older students to become the school teacher. Marianne attended Emporia State, Kansas Wesleyan, and K-State during the summer to get her degree and teach during the school year. She always had a job wherever she attended summer school. She obtained a teacher's certificate from Kansas Wesleyan the summer following high school graduation. She taught her first school year at Hyde School in 1948-49. The other rural schools she taught at were Mulchery 1949-50, Rodgers School 1951-52, and Naomi 1954-57, and in Beloit 1952-54, as well as primary grades in Glen Elder 1957-60, and substituted until 1966. Marianne was an excellent school teacher, and developed programs for children that were gifted to keep them engaged and interested. At that time, those ideas for gifted were not common at all, and were not well received. But that did not change Marianne or her goals for her students. She loved teaching. When she moved to Beloit, she had her own after school homework program for her grandchildren and their friends. Marianne did not have a sister by blood but neither did Emma Jane Coffield Dooley. They taught school together, lived together, went to summer school together, and stood up with each when they were married. Emma Jane and Kenneth, and Marianne and Wayne and their families spent every holiday, birthday, or special event together throughout their lives.

She married Wayne Philip Winkel on May 30, 1953 at Cawker City by Rev. Paul Meitl. She was baptized at the Beloit Christian Church at a younger age by Rev. Neal Lovell, but joined the Catholic Church in 1964, so the family would be united in their worship for their children. She was a woman of strong faith, and had her Bible in the dairy barn with her, and read it every chance she had.

When they were first married, they lived at the top of the hill south of Beloit. They then moved south of Glen Elder. During the summers, she would work at the Hazeltine Farm doing cooking, cleaning, and wash for the Hazeltine brothers. Wayne worked there also, doing the farming with the Catepillars. In May, 1961 they moved north of Glen Elder. She gave up teaching to raise their family and be a full-time partner on the farm. They

had sheep, hogs, and stock cattle which Wayne looked after while Marianne took on starting and managing the dairy, which she did a fine job of. She loved her dairy cows and it showed. She also started every spring by getting large numbers of baby chicks through the mail and raising them. She took orders from people in Glen Elder and then dressed and froze them for people to buy. She sold eggs to customers in Glen Elder and Beloit. To make ends meet, she also cleaned for people in Glen Elder and Beloit. As the kids grew older, they would rake yards also. During the summer on the way in from milking every morning, she would swing by the chicken house and kill and dress two chickens, fry them up while fixing breakfast for Wayne and the kids, pack one in the cooler for the field, and place the other one in the fridge for supper. During the school year, she would go out, start the milking, and milk for awhile, and then shut things down while she came in and got the family up, fix pancakes, get the kids off to school on the bus, and then go back out and finish the milking while Wayne looked after the stock cattle and did all the feeding. They worked as a team. Marianne always worked as hard as a man if not harder. When Wayne suddenly passed away in August of 1982, Marianne continued to run the farm with help from her children and her son-in-law, Craig Moritz. Due to health issues, Marianne moved to Beloit in 1991. She continued to work at cleaning for numerous individuals, businesses, and churches while also helping out with the grandchildren and anyone that needed help.

She enjoyed many day adventures with her cousins Bob Good and Arvilla Heiman. She was always very close to her cousins as a young child, and all through her life – not just with Bob and Arvilla, but with all of her other cousins. She had many stories of when they would ride the train from Beloit to Jamestown to stay with cousins. She was very interested in genealogy of her family, and worked very hard at obtaining pictures and other historical facts. Pictures were very important to her – past and present.

Marianne was a member of St. John's Catholic Church, the Ladies Guild, Catholic Daughters, Retired Teachers Association, and the Genealogical Society.

She was preceded in death by her parents; her husband Wayne; and son-in-law, Craig G. Moritz.

Marianne is survived by her daughters, Annabeth "Annie" Moritz-Nicholson and husband Greg, and Rosemary "Rosie" Kimble and husband Stephen; son, Philip Grant Winkel and wife Christene; grandchildren, Megan Bonebrake and husband Scott and their children, Piper and Deegan, Molly Krone and husband Jake and their child, Daylynn, Morgan and her son Colton, Brittany Boyce and husband Matthew and their children, Dakota, Malia, and Wade, Zachary Winkel  and daughter Isis, Zane Winkel, Jake McCrary, Matt Nicholson and wife Katie and their children Hayden, Gavyn, and Sawyer, Jordan Nicholson, Emily and Johnnie Gibson and their children Jackson and Dylan, and Joseph and Zahra Kollhoff; and a host of other relatives and friends.

A funeral mass will be at 10 AM Thursday, April 4 at the St. John's Catholic Church in Beloit. A rosary service will be at 5 PM Wednesday, April 3 at the Roberts Family Funeral Home. Survivors include her daughters, Annabeth "Annie" Moritz-Nicholson & Rosemary "Rosie" Kimble; & son, Philip. She was preceded in death by her husband Wayne. Cremation has taken place & there will be no visitation. Memorials may be given to the St. John's Memorial Trust Fund or the USD 273 Endowment Fund.