Marlys Jean (Harvey) Kinnel was born June 2, 1934, to Lewis and Lois (Stewart) Harvey on the family farm south of Gruver. She departed this life on Feb. 8, 2026, at her home in Carlsbad, Calif.
Marlys attended the Gruver school, graduating in 1952. She then attended Iowa State University, graduating in 1956 with a degree in dietetics and a minor in administration. After graduation, she worked at hospitals in Boone and Marshalltown. She moved to Dallas, Texas, in 1959 and worked as an administrative dietitian at Southern Methodist University.
While in Dallas, she met her future husband, John Kinnel. They were married at the chapel on the SMU campus in 1960.
In 1962, they moved to Trinidad for two years and then returned to Dallas. Their daughter was born in 1966 and their son joined them two years later. They lived in California from 1969-1974. In 1974, they moved to the Palos Verdes Peninsula.
While at Palos Verdes, Marlys was involved in many community organizations, especially those involving children.
She is survived by her daughter, Marlys Braun and her children Ryan (Bella), Chase and Lauren Braun; her son Douglas (Camille) and their children Dylan (Amber) their sons Issac and John; Micah and his son Nolan; Rachael and Elijah Kinnel; two sisters Hermina Amoroso of New Hampton, Iowa, and Betty (Dennis) DeVary of Estherville, and many nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by her husband, John; her parents, Lewis and Lois Harvey, and her brother-in-law Victor Amoroso.
