Lynette Rae Kanne

Lynette Rae Koelewyn, 65, of Elk Point, South Dakota passed away peacefully on Thursday, August 6, 2020 at Ava House in Sioux Falls with her family by her side. Lynnette was born to Arthur and Henrietta (Lubben) Koelewyn on November 29, 1954 in Pipestone, Minnesota. Lynn grew up on a farm near Edgerton, MN. She attended Leota Christian Elementary School and Southwest Christian High School in Edgerton, MN graduating in 1972. She graduated from Pipestone Area Vocational School in 1973 from their financial secretary program. In May 1973, she began working at the Social Security Office in Marshall, MN. In July 1975, she resigned that position. Lynn married Haroldene “Rusty” Kanne on July 5, 1975 in Edgerton, MN and they made their home in Lake Wilson, MN. She worked part-time for the Farmer Coop Elevator until January 1977. At that time, she began her insurance career at Murray County Insurance Agency in Slayton, MN. She continued in the insurance business and then in 1997, they moved to Elk Point, South Dakota where she managed Valley Insurance which later became Jensen Insurance and was retired in December 2019 due to health reasons. Lynn was a board member for the Southwest Minnesota Independent Agents Association, Slayton Kiwanis, and Slayton Chamber. After moving to Elk Point, she was a member of Elk Point Chamber and was a member of Beta Eta Chapter ESA for 15 years, and Elk Pint Senior Citizens. She was a member of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Elk Point. In her spare time, she enjoyed baking and traveling. They traveled to almost every state in the United States, including Alaska and Hawaii. They also traveled to Mexico, Canada, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Bahamas and Jamaica. Lynn and her husband, Rusty, took several trips over a 40-year period on their Honda Gold Wing motorcycles. She enjoyed playing cards, especially pinochle. They had several friends who met every few weeks to play. Lynn was diagnosed with Stage 4 endometrial cancer on April 26, 2012. She chose to go to Cancer Treatment Center of America for her treatments and was so appreciative of all that they did for her. Her caring and loving husband was the best caregiver anyone could want. He went through all the ups and downs with her, keeping her spirits up. During that time, she joined Cancer Fighters Care Network (patient arm of CTCA). She was given referrals of new patients to CTCA with the same type of cancer. She would call them and visit with them about her experience at CTCA and what they could expect from a patient’s view. She enjoyed sharing her story and answering their questions. CTCA also asked Lynn to do a national TV ad for them which she did. That was a very memorable experience and she had many calls from people across the nation telling her they saw her on TV. She entered hospice care in March 2020. Her job as an insurance agent allowed her to meet so many people over her 43-year career. She loved helping them understand insurance and guide them to the right policy for them. Many of them had been with her for years and she thought of all of them as her friends. She was there for them, regardless of the day of the week, or time, when they needed assistance. She is survived by her husband, Rusty, her sisters and brothers-in-law, Kathy (Joel) Verdoorn of Sibley, IA, Donna (Virgil) Chapman of Fulda, MN, and Lil (Rod) Netten of Rock Valley, IA; a sister-in-law and brother-in-law, Charlene and Richard Froderman of Adrian, MN, many nieces and nephews; numerous great nieces and nephews, and several great-great-nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents.