Lynn Marie Kovacs

Lynn Marie (Thorley) Kovacs, age 70, of Canton, unexpectedly passed away the morning of March 4, 2024. Lynn was born February 20, 1954, in Canton, to the late Alvin and Dolores (Fete) Thorley, the second of their four children.
Lynn attended St. Joseph's Catholic School through eighth grade, and then graduated from Canton Lincoln High School in 1972. While growing up, she enjoyed spending time with her friends on Arlington Avenue, sneaking home stray animals, going to the Slovak Club to visit her grandma, and being with her family.
After high school, she met and married Thomas Lenhart in 1975. Together, they had three children, Anne, Neil, and Jon. Being a mother was Lynn's favorite job and she spent her time attending every band concert, every baseball, basketball, volleyball, and football game. She also loved being a second mom to her children's friends. She was spontaneous and loved creating and surprising her entire family. One hot summer day, she even served ice cream sundaes for dinner, much to the delight of her children. She was also a Girl Scout leader, taking her troop camping, making crafts, and attending day camp every year. A favorite Girl Scout memory is her warning her troop to watch their footing jumping over a narrow creek, then turning around and stepping right into the creek herself. She loved entertaining and loved cooking for her entire family. Most holidays, you could find her in the kitchen with her famous stuffed shells in the oven. Her desserts were out of this world, including cream puffs, punchbowl cake, and all of her different kinds of cookies.
In 2003, she married William "Bil" Kovacs and became a stepmother to Christina and Cathy Kovacs. Lynn and Bil shared a love of playing golf, traveling, and spending time with family. They were also very involved with the Elks and travelled all over the country for the Hoop Shoot contest. They also took several trips with their friends to Myrtle Beach for a weeklong golf vacation. Getting up to watch the sunrise to take pictures was one of her favorite things to do, along with playing on golf leagues with her Fore Girls Golf ladies. She was also an avid scrapbooker, spending several weekends a year with her coworkers, friends, her stepdaughters, and her daughter at scrapbooking retreats, creating albums that catalog the memories of her family. She also loved crafting with her grandchildren and teaching them how to use her Cricut, even if she never let them use it unsupervised.
When her youngest son Jon went to school, she began her career at Plain Local Schools. She started as a library aide and worked her way up to Head Secretary at Taft, then Glenwood. Nothing made her happier than helping her teachers, working with her principals, and being the backbone of the front office. Many nights she spent in her kitchen, baking sweets and treats for her staff. She retired in 2021, and missed her people so much, but was happy to not have to work anymore!
The light of her life was absolutely her grandchildren, Nolan Lenhart, Audrey Lenhart, Paige Lenhart, Noah Kovacs, and Mason Taylor. Once her grandchildren came along, her children soon realized they were no longer the favorites. Lynn was meant to be a grandma and she excelled in this role. From craft nights, sleepovers, cookie decorating days, craft store trips, and teaching them how to bake and cook, they never had a dull moment with their grandma. Some might not know this, but Lynn was also a competitive gamer. When her children were young and would get in trouble, part of their punishment would be to sit while she took over their Nintendo and beat their high scores at Tetris. As a grandma, we made sure she was set up with a PlayStation and she quickly picked up Fortnite after learning her grandsons were playing. A Family Fortnite group text was started, including her son, her grandsons, her daughter, and her niece, and she was always the first to respond that she was ready to play. If you pulled up in her driveway in the evening, chances are you would see her in the window in the family room with her gaming headphones on, standing up and yelling at the tv.
Lynn leaves behind so many people to mourn her loss: her husband Bil, her daughter Anne (Dave) Taylor, sons Neil (Kelly) Lenhart and Jon (Victoria) Lenhart, stepdaughters Christina Kovacs and Cathy Vaughn, grandchildren Noah Vaughn, Mason Taylor, Nolan Lenhart, Paige Lenhart, and Audrey Lenhart. Sisters Gail Thorley Aeschbacher and Jill Thorley Lightner, and brother Gary (Donna) Thorley. Nieces Morgan (Christopher) Wright and Katie (Andy) Harter. Several aunts, uncles, and cousins are also left behind, along with more friends and coworkers than can possibly be counted. Her loss has left a huge hole in our lives, and she will be sorely missed.