Wayne Henry Leikam

Wayne H. Leikam passed away on April 3rd at Olathe Medical Center. He was 80 years old.

Wayne was a devoted husband, father, father-in-law, brother, brother-in-law, uncle, grandfather, and great grandfather to his family. He touched each of those members of his family with never-ending love, kindness and support. He was a great man of faith and believed in prayer, hugs, handshakes, small gestures of kindness like opening doors and many words of encouragement to those in need.

Wayne was born on May 8, 1939 in Cologne, MN to Henry and Bonnie Leikam and grew up in the Minnesota area.

Wayne married Betty on July 8th, 1961 in Waconia, MN. Shortly after he entered the Army and was stationed in Arlington, VA. After returning to Minnesota they had three daughters – The 3 K's – Kimberly, Kristin, and Karen. Wayne had more than 41 years of service in Telecommunications. He began climbing telephone poles as a lineman and supervisor for the United Telephone Service before accepting a management position and moving his family to Warrensburg, Missouri in 1973 to serve as the District Manager. He later moved to Kansas to take a position and later retire with Sprint, and enjoyed living near work and the golf course at Gardner Lake.

Early in life Wayne enjoyed snowmobiling and fishing in his birth state of Minnesota but he became an avid golfer when he moved to Missouri. He'd catch 9 holes of golf after work and 36 holes on the weekend. The last 20 years he enjoyed singing with his Barbershop group and sharing the joy of song. Wayne would never be without his tool bag and could fix just about anything.

Wayne was a loyal volunteer throughout his life and was dedicated to helping raise money for the American Diabetes Association thru many golf tournaments and bike rides. He was diagnosed with diabetes in his early 30's but managed his health and the ups and downs that came with this disease for more than 45 years.

Wayne looked forward to going to church each Sunday and served as an elder and usher. He also enjoyed watching his KC Royals, KC Chiefs and KU Jayhawks.

Wayne is survived by his wife Betty; three daughters, Kimberly Oglesby (Timm) of San Antonio, TX, Kristin Stoneman (James) of Overland Park, KS and Karen Bullock (Doug) of Merriam, KS. His grandchildren include Corey (Miriah), Josh (Taylor), Jordan, Bethany, Brooke, and Lindsey. His great grandchildren include Ezrah, Lilah, and Lucas. He is also survived by three younger sisters – Barbara, Kathy, and Christine.

A memorial service will held on July 16, 2020 at 11:00am at Redeemer Lutheran Church, with visitation an hour prior to service.

In lieu of flowers memorials are suggested to Redeemer Olathe Lutheran Church Preschool

Redeemer Olathe Lutheran Church
920 South Alta Lane
Olathe, KS 66061

To leave a message for the family, click on the "Share Memories" button above.