Frances "Louese" Winkler

  Louese Winkler, 92, of Wamego, passed away peacefully on May 13, 2017 surrounded by her husband and family at Autumn Hills in Riley, KS.   On December 31, 1924, Louese was born to Bert and Alta (Barrett) Strickler in Skidmore, MO.  She was united in marriage with Wendell “Wink” Winkler in 1946 and they enjoyed over 70 years together.   Louese was devoted to her family and loved spending time with her children and grandchildren.  Family vacations were extremely important to her and she enjoyed creating a strong sense of family, often saying they were making memories.  She loved hearing the grandchildren’s stories and was pleased they enjoyed times together. She had an avid interest in antiquing and could bring beauty out of items others considered junk!  She enjoyed refinishing furniture, attending auctions, and always had some form of house project in progress.   Louese was active in the Paola Methodist Church and helped with establishing their thrift store.  She was a Girl Scout leader when her daughters were young and taught Sunday school.  Louese was proud of her small town roots, first in Skidmore and later in Paola where she lived most of her life.  She valued lifelong friendships, and was nicknamed “Strick” by many who loved her.  As a child, Louese loved helping her father on his veterinarian calls and had many fun stories to tell of her adventures.  She had a great appreciation for animals, nature, and flowers, with her favorites being daisies and red geraniums.   She graduated from Baker University with a Bachelors Degree in Education.  While her husband was attending Washburn Law School, she taught English and Physical Education at Curtis Junior High in Topeka, KS.  Later she became a service representative at Southwestern Bell Telephone Company.  She and her husband are lifelong supporters of Paola High School, Baker University, and Washburn University.  She encouraged education for all and instilled a love for reading in her family though regular library trips.   Louese is survived by her devoted husband, Wink, her daughters: Melissa (Steve) Eshelman, St. George, KS, and Janie (Rod) Carsten, Elkhart, IA; six grandchildren: Amy Eshelman, Larissa Eshelman, Maddy Eshelman, Sarah (Mike) Clark, Bryan Carsten and Jonathan Carsten; and two great-granddaughters: Aspen Clark and Riley Clark.  Louese was loved by her family and will be deeply missed.   She is preceded in death by her parents, her sister, Joey Strickler Garrison, her brother, Jay (JoAnn) Strickler, and her son-in-law, Larry Patterson.   Visitation will be held Friday, May 19, 2017 from 9:30 -11:00 a.m. at the Stewart Funeral Home of Wamego.  Private family burial will be in the Paola City Cemetery.  In lieu of flowers, memorials are suggested for the Paola Public Library or the Wamego Public Library, and may be left in care of Stewart Funeral Home, PO Box 48, Wamego, KS 66547.