GEORGE WINN A SELF-MADE MAN

George L. Winn bought the Kansas Fire Equipment Co. in Wichita in 1950. But he was not a businessman. Not yet.

''It was very small, and he knew absolutely nothing about the fire business," said his wife, Louise, of Howard. "He built it into a fantastic business."

He taught himself how to succeed, she said. In 1950, the business had one employee - George Winn. Today it's housed in a larger building in Wichita, has 17 employees and serves a large area and many large companies.

''He was a fair man. He was a firm man. He was an intelligent man," his wife said. "I always called him my personal calculator because he could add figures in his head faster than I could do them on a calculator."

Mr. Winn, who was diagnosed as having lung cancer in 1984, died Friday at his home. He was 64.

Services will be at 10 a.m. Monday at the Zimmerman Funeral Home in Howard and 2 p.m. Monday at Lakeview Cemetery in Wichita.

Born Jan. 30, 1924, in Wichita, Mr. Winn grew up in Howard. After high school, he joined the Army and was stationed in Europe. Later, in the Army reserves, he served in the Korean War. On April 19, 1969, Mr. Winn married Louise Calvert; both had been married previously.

They lived in Wichita until 1984, when they built a country home on 160 acres they owned in Howard. Mr. Winn taught Louise's son about the business and placed him in charge.

In November 1987, Mr. Winn was elected to the Elk County Commission, on which he served until his death.

''He was going to run this year," his wife said. "He had high hopes. At the time he took the job, he didn't know the cancer had recurred.

''He was a self-made man. I think anybody who knew George loved him."

His favorite hobbies were fishing and quail hunting and he was involved with the Optimist Club and the Shriners.

In addition to his wife, Mr. Winn is survived by one son, Jerry Calvert of Wichita; three daughters, Karyl Zettl, and Martha Winn, both of Wichita, and Donna Young of Long Lake, Minn.; five brothers, Wesley of Taylor, Ark., Frank of Midland, Texas, Ray of Osage Beach, Mo., and Dwight and Bob, both of Howard; seven sisters, Aileen Irvine of Topeka, Charlene Jacot of Moline, Shirley Maidt of Winfield, Myrna Herbinaux of Redwood City, Calif., Velda Barkley of Blairsville, Pa., Phyllis Davis of Braman, Okla., and Anita Hatfield of Howard; and five grandchildren. Arrangements are by Zimmerman Funeral Home in Howard.