It is always a privilege to tell the stories of grandparents who have come alongside the school as financial supporters because they are inevitably tales of faith. John and Mary Anne Lynn were high school sweethearts in Kennewick, Washington. John was a football player and an Eagle Scout; Mary Anne was a gymnast. In ’68 they got married and John worked professionally for the Boy Scouts and Mary Anne taught middle school. Four years into their marriage, John was working long hours and it had become clear to Mary Anne (she recalls with a laugh) that she “had not married Prince Charming.” She had grown up Catholic, but ecumenical changes had caused her to ask questions and grow distant from her faith. She remembers going for a walk in a Kennewick park at dusk and thinking, “God, if you’re real, I really need to know.”
“I go home and John comes home and says, ‘Y’know, I think it would look good for my job if we went to church.’” So they picked a church with the biggest scout troop and unintentionally sat next to the pastor’s wife who introduced them to other couples and got them involved with a Bible study. At the time, they didn’t even own a Bible. “For all the wrong reasons, we went to church,” she says. But God heard and directed their steps into their own personal faith.
Shortly afterwards, their daughter Rebecca was born and John’s dad passed away. A few days before John’s dad died he got saved, and the transformation that took place in these last moments of his life spoke volumes to John and Mary Anne as new Christians.
Over their 57 years of marriage, John and Mary Anne lived in Spokane, Boise, Medford, and even “did some hard time” in southern California. Life always kept them in the Pacific Northwest, which worked well for a man who loved all things outdoors. John’s career path eventually led him into Human Resources, and he was passionate about his advocacy for working conditions and employee needs. He brought this passion with him when he joined the Geneva Academy board.
John and Mary Anne raised two kids and had two foreign exchange students. At John’s funeral last year, their exchange student from Brazil shared her testimony. Recalling a hike that John led on the Pacific Crest Trail, she said,
“Every muscle in my body ached after hiking 20 miles that day. By every worldly measure, it was one of the least glamorous moments of my life. And yet, it remains one of the most beautiful memories that I have… Looking back, I think that was one of the first times I truly understood the God you had been trying to show me all along.”
She goes on.
On the trail your name was First John. I don’t think anyone ever needed an explanation. If they walked with you long enough, they understood why. Your faith was woven into every mile you walked, every conversation you had, every stranger you welcomed, and every life you quietly shaped.
John’s passing last February left a true hole in the community, but his legacy lives on. This year the Lynn family has initiated a scholarship in John’s name for a Geneva Academy high school student to commemorate the many qualities of this wonderful man – the John Lynn Memorial Scholarship (more details to come).
Today Mary Anne enjoys her family and community here in Roseburg. Her two Kitchens grandchildren, both graduates of Geneva, are now studying at Bushnell University. When asked what she would like to say to the Geneva community, she said, “I’ve watched my two precious grandkids grow in such a beautiful way because of this school.”
Thank you to Mary Anne and her late husband, John, for your commitment to Christ and your community. John lived by the motto “prior planning prevents poor performance,” and by God’s grace, even in death he is still active – an inspiring story of planning well.