Orin Lynn Van Winkle, 79 of Kilgore, passed from this life on April 8, 2023, after his prolonged battle with heart problems.
Orin, was born on February 23, 1944 to Ira and Gladys in Valentine. After Orin graduated from Kilgore High School in 1963, he went on to work for the railroad before enlisting in the US Army. He served in Korea during the Vietnam War. After returning from war, he attended Chadron State and received a degree in Accounting.
While he didn’t apply his skills with numbers in accounting, he was a devoted cattle rancher. He worked hard to purchase his uncle’s ranch on the Niobrara River, keeping it within the family since homesteading.
In 1985, Orin married Mary Kehr of Nenzel and went on to have fopur children, Megan Failor, Nathan Van Winkle and twins that preceded him in death. Best known for his typically stoic nature and easy conversation on the phone, he was always listening and thinking even as his hearing began to fail in his later years.
Orin never retired (as most ranchers don’t) but did become the Water and Maintenance Operator of the Village of Kilgore in 2000. He earned the affectionate title of Mr. Kilgore through his unending service to the residents that call Kilgore home by maintaining the community center, plowing snow, hanging flags and holiday decorations as well as attending water school and daily monitoring of the city well. When the weather was agreeable you could usually find him on a lawnmower tending to the public spaces in Kilgore or in the Kilgore Cemetery where he was a member of the board. He was a natural mechanic spending hours rebuilding ranch equipment and the family vehicles including the 63 Chevy Impala whose engine he rebuilt just before leaving on his honeymoon in Colorado. A place he also called home briefly before returning to Nebraska. He was a proud member of the American Legion Post 319 usually “getting his hands clean” doing dishes at the yearly steak dinner or being part of the color guard for games and funerals. He was an avid reader enjoying several different titles simultaneously. Years of tending cows left him often reading late into the early hours of morning. He was a consistent example of putting your neighbors' needs high on your list of priorities. Always willing to offer a hand or at least some advice.
Orin was predeceased by his parents Ira and Gladys Van Winkle, brother David Van Winkle, and his unborn twins.
He is survived by his wife Mary Van Winkle, his daughter Megan and her husband Josh Failor as well as their two daughters Reagan and Mia, his son Nathan and his wife Anne as well as their two children Lucy and Arthur and his sisters Sharon Grove and Marn Telitz her husband Vern, brother Boyd Van Winkle and many nieces and nephews that were dear to him.
Services were held at St Mary’s Catholic Church in Nenzel on April 17, 2023 at 11:00 a.m. MST. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to Kilgore Cemetery Fund. Sandoz Chapel of the Pines was entrusted with service arrangements.
