Obituaries - Friday, July 31

Rene Hunter "Skip" Knight

March 22, 1936 - July 29, 2026

Rene Hunter "Skip" Knight , 90, of Salina, Kansas passed away at his home on July 29, 2026. He was born on March 22, 1936, the oldest child of Milton "Olin" and Adda (Hunter) Knight in Concordia, Kansas. In 1942 the family moved to Salina, Kansas. He attended Salina public schools and graduated from Salina High School in May 1954. He then attended Kansas State University for one year and pledged to the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity. After his one year he came back home and started to work at the Strand Theater as a Lead Usher. In 1957 he started work for Gages Plumbing, Heating, Air Conditioning and Appliances as a Warehouse Man and then transitioned to the service department and then into the appliance department.

On October 27, 1957, Rene married Carla Sue Blaske at Trinity Lutheran Church. He became a father of four sons. As the boys grew older, he became active as a Cub Scout Den Leader. In 1968, Rene went to work for Wyatt Manufacturing as a Sales and Marketing representative and stayed with them until September 1983. After some well needed time off, Rene went back to work in the spring of 1984 at Systems 4 as the Service Department Manager. It was during this time that he acquired his Journeyman and Master Plumber license. He retired on December 31, 2012. Throughout the years, Rene enjoyed woodworking projects, maintaining the lawn and garden and traveling with his wife, Carla.

Skip was preceded in death by his parents, Milton and Adda (Hunter) Knight, along with his stepmother, Oleta (Tait) Knight; his in-laws, Edward and Matilda "Tillie" (Bonin) Blaske, and his son Bradley Knight. He is survived by his sons, Ronald (Rene') Knight, Brian Knight, and Daniel (Lisa) Knight; his grandsons, Bradley (Aimee) Knight, Craig (Tricia) Knight, and Chase (Rylie) Knight; his granddaughter, Danielle (Zachary) Kinsey; and his great-grandchildren, Logan Knight, Brantley Knight, Tucker Knight, Liam Knight, Leonidas Knight, Lochlan Knight, Elizabeth Knight, Haven Knight, Parker Knight, Caden Kinsey, Macie Kinsey, and Jace Kinsey; his sister Linda Shadel; and numerous nephews and nieces.

A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. Wednesday, August 5, 2026 at Trinity Lutheran Church, 702 S. 9th St, Salina. Inurnment will be in Roselawn Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers memorials may be made to Trinity Lutheran Church.

Ryan Mortuary