Lynn Edward Kandel

We are deeply saddened to share that Lynn Edward Kandel passed away on Wednesday, October 14, 2020.  Aged 83, Lynn died peacefully, with his loving family surrounding him during his last weeks and days after a long battle with dementia.

Born in Canton, OH on May 24, 1937, Lynn attended Louisville High School in Louisville, OH, graduating in 1955.  Lynn went on to study Journalism at Kent State University.  At Kent State, Lynn was active in student and journalistic life.  Lynn served in a variety of editorial positions on the “Kent Stater,” the university’s daily newspaper, and the “Chestnut Burr,” the yearbook, where he was co-Sports Editor.  Lynn was a member of Theta Chi fraternity.  After graduating from Kent State in 1959, Lynn moved to Cleveland, starting his career as an editorial writer, and then a sports writer and photographer.  Lynn’s career transitioned into public relations and later fundraising.  He enjoyed working on capital campaigns, focusing on fundraising for many major hospitals and health organizations in the Midwest and Florida, and eventually founded his own consulting business where he supported development campaigns for a variety of organizations.

While living in Cleveland, Lynn met his beloved wife Bonnie. They were married on July 1, 1967, and had two sons, Kristopher and Kyle. After several years spent in Cleveland, Dayton, and Miami, FL, Bonnie and Lynn settled in Indianapolis, which became home. Bonnie and Lynn were married for over 50 years.

Lynn loved sports, particularly baseball, and was an avid fan of professional, college, and local sports.  He loved to talk about his children’s and grandchildren’s sporting activities. Lynn also had a great interest in history, loving to read and talk about a variety of historical events and figures.  Once he retired, Lynn would go to Florida in the winters with Bonnie, where she enjoyed going to the beach, while he attended as many spring training games as possible, while the Cleveland Indians’ training camp was still in Florida.  Lynn also was a dedicated member of Kiwanis Club for many years and enjoyed not only supporting their service projects, but spending time with other Kiwanis members.

Lynn was a kind and charismatic person. He loved to connect with people and never missed the chance to meet someone new. He loved his family very much and was a caring husband, father and grandfather. He loved keeping up on all his families’ activities and interests, while happily settling into retirement in his beloved Midwest. We miss Lynn very much and are grateful for the time we had with him.

Lynn is survived by his two sons and five grandchildren: Kristopher (Monique), and children Athena and Alexander; and Kyle (former spouse Melissa), and children Kaelie, Kyra, and Mitchell, and an extended family of many cousins and Kandel relatives. Lynn was predeceased by his dear wife Bonnie, who passed away earlier in 2020 after a valiant struggle with cancer.  Lynn was also predeceased by his parents, Claude and Ruth Kandel.

Lynn’s family will be holding private services for him later this year.