Francis X. “Frank” Reardon, 86, beloved husband of Mary Anne and loving father of Derek and Jenny passed away on July 6, 2014 in Overland Park.
He was born on May 14, 1928 in Richmond, Virginia, the son of Francis X. and Carolyn Reardon. His father was the creator of the pantomime comic strip Bozo, which was syndicated by the Chicago Times Syndicate. In September of 1949, he joined the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) to begin a 14 year course of studies. He served as a priest in the Archdiocese of Washington D.C. until 1970. In 1968, while still in the Jesuits, he accepted a position with the Federal Housing Administration in the Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in Washington DC. In 1970, he resigned from the Jesuits and was married to his wife of 44 years, Mary Anne. He was transferred to Atlanta, and subsequently to Greensboro and Omaha. In 1983, he was transferred to Kansas City to become the Regional Director of Housing for HUD. In 1992, he retired from HUD and became a part-time instructor in philosophy at Johnson County Community College where he taught for the next 15 years. In 2009, he published a book about his lifetime experiences, The Search: Analytical Reflections on the Search for Meaning in Everyday Life.
Frank was preceded in death by his son, Derek and his brother, Joseph J. Reardon.
He is survived by his wife, Mary Anne; daughter, Jenny Reardon, of San Francisco; sisters, RoseMary Cosby and Margaret Ann Latimer; brothers, John E., Patrick A., Michael T. and Gordon T. Reardon, of Richmond, Virginia; and several nieces and nephews.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, July 10, 2014, at Holy Spirit Catholic Church, 11300 W 103rd St, Overland Park, KS 66214. An interment will follow at the Johnson County Memorial Gardens, Overland Park, KS. The family will receive friends from 9:00 to10:00 a.m. at the Johnson County Chapel, 11200 Metcalf Ave, Overland Park, KS.
In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting that donations be made to Village Shalom, 5500 W 123rd St, Overland Park, KS 66209 or to Room To Read, 111 Sutter Street, 16th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94104.