BURDETT – Franklin Winston Nelson (Lynn) 74, passed away January 17, 2017, at Aberdeen Village in Olathe, Kansas. He was born November 25, 1942 in Ness City, KS, the son of Albert & Irene Nelson.

Lynn met Sharon, his wife of 53 years at Ft Hays State University. The couple moved to Burdett, Kansas after college where Lynn had a life long career in insurance & banking. Lynn enjoyed music, spending time at the lake, hunting, & traveling. He was an avid pilot with a great love of flying. He would often joke that he could sniff his way to an airport where he liked to watch planes take off and land. He loved God, his family and his community and he had a deeply generous heart.

Lynn was the CEO of The Burdett State Bank, served on the Board of Governors for the Kansas Bankers Association and was appointed and served as the Banking Commissioner of the State of Kansas under Governor Bill Graves. He also became certified as an Emergency Medical Technician, founded the Burdett EMT service and served as a Deputy Sheriff for Pawnee County.

Lynn is survived by: wife Sharon R. Nelson of Topeka, KS; daughter Julie Nelson Meers of Kansas City, MO; son, Kelly R. Nelson of Shawnee, KS; brother Dan Nelson, Tuscon, AZ; sister Theda Nelson, KS; 3 grandchildren, Katherine Meers of Seattle, WA, Garrett Nelson & Chloe’ Nelson of Shawnee, KS. He was preceded in death by his parents and his siblings Alma, Beulah, Bernice, Mildred & Albert.
A visitation will be held at the Burdett United Methodist Church on Friday, January 20, 2017 from 1 – 3 pm. A graveside service will be held at the Brown’s Grove Cemetery in Burdett at 3:30pm Friday, with Pastor Brad McCoy presiding.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be given to Southwest Topeka Bible Church, Topeka Rescue Mission, Burdett EMS, Burdett United Methodist Church or Alzheimers Association all in care of Beckwith Mortuary, P.O. Box 477, Larned, KS 67550. Personal condolences may be left at www.beckwithmortuary.com