HomeObituariesFormer Mayor Lynn Reitnouer Passes Away

Former Mayor Lynn Reitnouer Passes Away

Lynn Paul Reitnouer, civic leader, former mayor and 52-year resident of San Marino, passed away peacefully, with his family by his side on at Huntington Memorial Hospital in Thursday, March 10. He was 83.

Mr. Reitnouer had battled respiratory and heart challenges for several years, but never lost his calm demeanor or brilliant sense of humor, living a full, productive and honorable life as husband, father, grandfather, friend and mentor.

Lynn is survived by his devoted wife of 62 years, Winslow (Winnie), son John, daughter-in-law Susan; grandchildren Katherine and Alexander; sister-in-law Meredith; nephew Paul and family; sister-in-law Mary Coyne; many loving cousins, and his A.F.S. Turkish son Erol Guler and family.

Lynn’s parents, Minnie Grage and Arthur Nathan, were Baptist missionaries who met and married in the Belgian Congo. They returned to teach in New Orleans, where Lynn and his older brother, Arthur Jr. – now deceased – were born; Lynn on Dec. 26, 1932. The family relocated to Monrovia in 1936, where Lynn attended school through the 10th grade, later graduating from Antelope Valley High School in Lancaster. He received his B.A. from the University of California, Santa Barbara, in 1955 and his Masters from California State University, Los Angeles, in 1959 – which in 2000 honored him as a Distinguished Alumnus.

Following graduation, Lynn lived in Monrovia and taught and coached basketball at Mark Keppel High School in Alhambra. In 1960 he accepted a teaching and coaching position with the U.S. Army Dependents High School in both Baumholder and Augsburg, Germany. Moving from Germany in 1964 to San Marino, Lynn fulfilled a long-held goal to enter the investment business, joining Crowell, Weedon & Co. and, in 1968, becoming a partner of the firm. Reitnouer managed the Los Angeles office until 1994 and was honored with the first ever “Lifetime Achievement Award” in 2010.

For several early years, he was the financial consultant for KFWB Radio and host of the live “Early Bird Market Memo” on television Channel 22. He served as a Governor of the NASD, was founding chairman of the NASDAQ Marketing Committee, president of the L.A. Bond Club and Kappa Beta Phi and was also a member of L.A. Rotary Five.

Service to the community was very important to Lynn. He was a director of Forest Lawn Memorial Park Association from 1967-2006, chairman of the Board for 21 years, and a director of Hollywood Park, Inc. and its successor, Pinnacle Entertainment. He also held numerous civic and charitable positions. He served on the San Marino City Council from 1976-1986, was mayor of San Marino from 1980-1984, president of San Marino City Club in 1978 and scoutmaster of Troop 354.

During his term as mayor, Reitnouer was credited by several residents for performance above and beyond the call of normal duty as he was forced to manage the city with diminished funding as a result of the passing of California’s Proposition 13.

Lynn was presented with medals from both the Republic of San Marino for support given during the 1984 Olympics and establishing a Sister City relationship; and from the Republic of Austria, for promoting friendships and services to Austrians. He was a fellow and overseer of The Huntington Library, chair and trustee of the University of California, Santa Barbara Board of Trustees, president of Chancellor’s Council, and was honored with the Alumni Service Award. An auditorium in the Intercollegiate Athletic Center is named the Winnie and Lynn Reitnouer Auditorium.

Lynn was also a member of Annandale Golf Club, Valley Club, the Breakfast Panel, and Sigma Alpha Epsilon, serving several terms on its National Foundation Board. Two mantras guided his life: “giving back” and “my word is my bond.”

The many years spent at Mammoth and St. Malo Beach were joyful for him as were the Reitnouer’s worldwide travels.

Also enriching his life were the many Austrian young people who became a permanent part of his family and his caregivers who made his last years comfortable, especially Brent, Edgar, Rose, Christine, Laken, and always, Clara. The Reitnouer family greatly appreciates and reveres the paramedics of the San Marino Fire Department.

A memorial service will be held at San Marino Community Church, 1750 Virginia Road, on Thursday, April 7 at 2 p.m. A private interment is planned at an earlier date at Forest Lawn. Those who wish may make donations in Lynn’s name to Huntington Memorial Hospital.

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