John P. St. John Memorial High School
Class of 1956

(Aug. 5, 1938 — March 5, 2011)

As a young boy, Lee spent time in his parents’ hardware store, greeting and getting to know the people of Olathe. He attended the University of Kansas and returned to Olathe where he worked 30 years as a postman. He knew people’s names when they recited their address. Lee’s second career was as assistant funeral director at W.L. Frye & Son Mortuary. Olathe’s history was Lee’s passion. He took photos of buildings that were slated for demolition so he could capture how Olathe used to look for future generations. For many years, on Old Settlers weekend, Lee showed his 800-plus slides of Olathe’s history at the funeral home. Many students in the Olathe district had the unique opportunity to see Olathe’s history through Lee’s slide shows.