1928
Beverly
2009
Beverly Labunski
January 28, 1928 — October 15, 2009
Beverly Susan Marshall Labunski
B. Susan Marshall Labunski, 81, of Overland Park, Kansas, died at her home on October 15, 2009. An artist, her work most familiar to Johnson Countians were the “Bat Boy” drawings once used as the logos of Johnson County 3&2 Baseball. Labunski was born January 28, 1928 in Kansas City, Missouri to the late John Curtis Marshall and the late Lucille LaCaff Marshall. Labunski received a full scholarship to the Kansas City Art Institute, where she studied painting, and later studied with Asterio Pascolini and Robert Kalthoff. She also was deeply involved in community organizations; in addition to her work for 3&2, she was involved in local school groups and youth sports, was a member of the Kansas City Young Matrons and was a past president of the Kansas City Athenaeum. She was known to be one of the few outspoken liberal Democrats living in Johnson County in the 1950s and 1960s; a Democratic delegation once tried to persuade her to run for public office, beginning with what appeared to them to be an easy run for the open mayor’s office in Prairie Village. Knowing that her family attorney and good friend Robert Bennett also was planning to run for the open seat, and having great respect for his political abilities, she declined, with more than a little amusement. She was married to the late Stanislaw Labunski until his death in 1990; her sister, Jacqueline McIntyre, also preceded her in death. She was fortunate enough to spend the last years of her life at home, being cared for by family members; all three of her daughters were at her bedside when she died. She is survived by her brother, Col. John C. Marshall (USAF – Ret.), of Tacoma, Washington; her daughters, Ania Johnson, Laura Edgington, and Carla Labunski, all of Overland Park, Kansas; her son, Jan Curt Labunski, of Diamond Bar, California; seven grandchildren; and one great-grandchild. Labunski will be buried with her husband at Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery; interment will be private. The family will host a celebration of her life, her artwork, and her love of the color red – especially bright red lipstick – from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, October 21, 2009, in the Fireside Room of the Overland Park Christian Church, 75th and Conser, Overland Park, Kansas. Labunski always told her children, “bring me my flowers while I’m alive, not after I’m dead when I can’t enjoy them.” Therefore, the family requests that anyone who wishes to honor her memory send flowers to their own beloved friends and families. Alternatively, memorial contributions may be made in her name to the Southern Poverty Law Center, 400 Washington Avenue, Montgomery, Alabama, 36104.
B. Susan Marshall Labunski, 81, of Overland Park, Kansas, died at her home on October 15, 2009. An artist, her work most familiar to Johnson Countians were the “Bat Boy” drawings once used as the logos of Johnson County 3&2 Baseball. Labunski was born January 28, 1928 in Kansas City, Missouri to the late John Curtis Marshall and the late Lucille LaCaff Marshall. Labunski received a full scholarship to the Kansas City Art Institute, where she studied painting, and later studied with Asterio Pascolini and Robert Kalthoff. She also was deeply involved in community organizations; in addition to her work for 3&2, she was involved in local school groups and youth sports, was a member of the Kansas City Young Matrons and was a past president of the Kansas City Athenaeum. She was known to be one of the few outspoken liberal Democrats living in Johnson County in the 1950s and 1960s; a Democratic delegation once tried to persuade her to run for public office, beginning with what appeared to them to be an easy run for the open mayor’s office in Prairie Village. Knowing that her family attorney and good friend Robert Bennett also was planning to run for the open seat, and having great respect for his political abilities, she declined, with more than a little amusement. She was married to the late Stanislaw Labunski until his death in 1990; her sister, Jacqueline McIntyre, also preceded her in death. She was fortunate enough to spend the last years of her life at home, being cared for by family members; all three of her daughters were at her bedside when she died. She is survived by her brother, Col. John C. Marshall (USAF – Ret.), of Tacoma, Washington; her daughters, Ania Johnson, Laura Edgington, and Carla Labunski, all of Overland Park, Kansas; her son, Jan Curt Labunski, of Diamond Bar, California; seven grandchildren; and one great-grandchild. Labunski will be buried with her husband at Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery; interment will be private. The family will host a celebration of her life, her artwork, and her love of the color red – especially bright red lipstick – from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, October 21, 2009, in the Fireside Room of the Overland Park Christian Church, 75th and Conser, Overland Park, Kansas. Labunski always told her children, “bring me my flowers while I’m alive, not after I’m dead when I can’t enjoy them.” Therefore, the family requests that anyone who wishes to honor her memory send flowers to their own beloved friends and families. Alternatively, memorial contributions may be made in her name to the Southern Poverty Law Center, 400 Washington Avenue, Montgomery, Alabama, 36104.
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