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August 31st, 2006
BRADENTON - Marjorie Gearhart Kinnan - a diminutive and genteel woman whose vigorous love of children and learning made her a giant in the history of education in Manatee County - died August 30 at age 95.
“What a wonderful lady,” said Superintendent Roger Dearing. “Up until the last year I would see her on a monthly basis during board meetings for the Manatee Education Foundation. She was so vibrant, so energetic and she had a great sense of humor. She was woven into every thread of this county and was a formative figure in this community.”
Born February 6, 1911 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Mrs. Kinnan was a 1932 graduate of the University of Pittsburgh where she majored in Latin and minored in French. She moved to Manatee County in 1951 with her husband, Joe, and three children.
While earning a master's degree in school psychology from the University of South Florida, Mrs. Kinnan served as a teacher and counselor in Manatee County schools from 1966-1976. In 1976, Mrs. Kinnan was elected to the Manatee County School Board where she spent 16 years and served as chairwoman of the School Board for three years.
In 1998, the Manatee County School Board named a new elementary school in Mrs. Kinnan's honor. Over the last several years, she was a frequent visitor to the school and the children loved being in the presence of the school's namesake.
Throughout her life, Mrs. Kinnan's energy and enthusiasm for education was contagious. Her son, Harry, was a Hall-of-Fame basketball coach at Manatee Community College and is currently a member of the Manatee County School Board. Another son, Joe, is a Hall-of-Fame football coach at Manatee High School.
Mrs. Kinnan is survived by her three children, Harry, Joe and Anne: five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Public memorial services will be held Saturday, Sept. 2, at 2 p.m. at the First United Methodist Church, located at 603 11th Street West in Bradenton.
The Kinnan family has requested that, in lieu of flowers, contributions be made to the Manatee Education Foundation to benefit the Marge Kinnan Memorial Fund. The fund will be used to provide educational opportunities and recognition programs for the students at Marjorie G. Kinnan Elementary, the school named in her honor. The address for the Manatee Education Foundation is; Post Office Box 9069, Bradenton, FL 34206-9069.
A PARTIAL LIST OF MRS. KINNAN'S ACHIEVEMENTS AND ACCOLADES
1966-1976 - Mrs. Kinnan taught and served as a school counselor in Manatee County.
1976 - She was elected to the Manatee County School Board where she served for 12 years, including three years as the school board chairwoman. A fighter and champion of efforts to integrate county schools, Kinnan received special recognition by the local NAACP for her leadership on that issue.
1976 - She received Louise B. Johnson Humanitarian Award
1998 - The School Board voted to name an elementary school in her honor. The school is located at 3415 Tallevast Road.
1999 - She was named the Distinguished Manatee County Citizen of the Year.
2000 - She received the Distinguished Alumni Award from the University of South Florida
2000 - She became the first local woman to receive the Salvation Army's Crystal Shield Award. 2000 - She received the “Woman of Achievement Award” from Delta Delta Delta Sorority.
2006 - She was named “Paul Harris Fellow” by local Rotary Club.
Feb. 2, 2006 - Students and staff at the school that bears her name honored her with a party for her 95th birthday. The students sang songs to her and played a video specifically created for the occasion titled; “The ABC's of Mrs. Kinnan.”
Marjorie Kinnan