Deanna Lynn Thompson

Deanna Lynn Thompson passed away on June 15, 2026. She was born in October 1949 in Kansas City, Missouri, the daughter of the late Walter E. Sr. and Thelma Thompson. She grew up in Overland Park, Kansas with her parents and her surviving brother Walter E. Thompson, Jr.

Those closest to her knew her as “Dee”. She spent many years building a distinguished career as a corporate pilot before transitioning her experience to the ground. She retired from FlightSafety International as a flight instructor, where she left a lasting impact on countless pilots who took to the skies under her guidance.

While her professional life was anchored in math and science, Dee’s personal life was full of creative outlets. Whether she was sitting at a sewing machine, lost in painting, baking for her family, or decorating for the next holiday, she brought passion to everything she touched.

Dee’s greatest legacy, however, is the family she leaves behind. She shared her life with her beloved husband, Robert Kowing. She was a devoted mother to her children, Cynthia Brown (Andrew) and Tom Hutchins (Charlotte), and a loving stepmother to Amber Hazlett (Chris), Adam Kowing (Jessica), Houston Kowing, and Ashley Kowing.

Her joy only multiplied with the next generations. She was the proud grandmother of Alex Brown (Leean), Nicklaus Campbell (Macy), Hannah Smith (Mclane), and Benjamin Kowing, and the adoring great-grandmother of Sawyer, Kenneth, and Campbell. Her home was never complete without the companionship of a loyal dog, a lifelong passion that was most recently fulfilled by her beloved dog Yeager, who misses her dearly.

Deanna will always be a special individual – a dedicated mother who was equally at home, in the cockpit of an airplane or wielding a paintbrush. She taught us to believe in ourselves, never stop learning, and always make time to create something beautiful. She will be profoundly missed, but her spirit will live on every time we look up at the clouds or gather around a family table.

A Celebration of Life will be held at 10:00am on Thursday, June 25, 2026, with visitation one hour prior, at Lakeview Funeral Home, 12100 E 13th Street N, Wichita, Kansas 67206.