1952
Mr.
2012
Mr. Terry Frederick
November 30, 1952 — December 24, 2012
Terry M. Frederick, 60, of Lenexa, KS passed away December 24, 2012. The family will greet friends at 12PM and service will start at 12:30PM Friday December 28, 2012 at St. Paul's United Methodist Church 7740 Lackman Rd, Lenexa, KS 66217 with interment to follow at Johnson County Memorial Gardens 11200 Metcalf Ave, Overland Park, KS 66210 at 2PM. In lieu of flowers the family requests Memorial Contributions to go to American Heart Association 6800 West 93rd Street, Overland Park, KS 66212.
Terry was the son of Maurice and Frances Lois (Dutoit) Frederick.
Tribute to Terry (homily given by the Reverend Sandra Cox, St. Paul's United Methodist Church, Lenexa, KS (slightly modified)):
To celebrate the life of Terry Frederick is to celebrate the inquisitiveness of the human spirit. For he was always expanding his mind; always finding something new to learn about.
As a child he read the Bible on his own. Perhaps that is what set the foundation for him to be such a deeply religious man.
As a college student, it was not enough to earn a degree in mathematics…he also became an instructor in BASIC programming, problem solving with computers. Perhaps that is what set for him his lifelong love of finding ways for computers to solve both work related challenges and establish recreational opportunities as well.
Much of Terry's career was given to finding ways computers could make our lives richer and more convenient. He worked on point of sale and credit card processing programs that allow you and I to make hotel reservations, ATM transactions, transfer our mutual funds, and for law enforcement to review, store and catalogue in-car video as well as designing software for wiretapping and law enforcement requirements. He came to file 20 patents in telephony…designs and ideas to enhance our ability to communicate with each other.
Terry became fascinated with engineering and absorbed himself with learning as much as he could. He also came to love playing chess and building robots. In fact, he and engineer John Aker built a robot that played chess…that was featured on a MacNeil/Lehrer PBS technology special.
He truly loved robotics, he was the President of the Kansas City Robotics Society for a couple of years. One of his designs was a robot that learned how to navigate a maze…it's on the floor of his living room right now.
Terry seemed to really enjoy combining two fields, like electronics and art. He found it fascinating that electronics could create art and became an instructor at the Kansas City Art Institute. He developed software that made disparate patterns of lines align and become symmetrical, creating a work of art. He and an associate entered it as an exhibit in a competition in Trondheim Norway and received 3rd place.
Camp Quality was another of Terry's commitments. He brought the robotics team to Camp Quality and helped children with cancer find connections with something that for just a little while would take their minds off being sick and let them just be children for a little while.
Terry seemed to have a fondness for creating something that would invite participation by those who viewed it. Perhaps you have heard of the Spin Thing, a permanent exhibit at Science City in Union Station that is a wonderfully interactive exhibit that interacts with its viewers. He loved to watch people pass by it, generating the spinning thing.
Or his digital kaleidoscope that greets visitors to Hallmark's Kaleidoscope…that creative and interactive exhibit at Hallmark in Crown Center. Terry created a kaleidoscope that uses images from children or visitors looking at it…so they become a kaleidoscopic image themselves.
Do you get a sense of the creative, energetic mind that Terry had?
And how he used it to help us become so in tune with electronics or robotics he is sharing with us or demonstrating for us that we actually become integrated into it! How better to understand something or enjoy it than to become part of it.
That brought Terry a lot of joy. To see his students have an aha moment, to spend hours reading technical manuals so he could help his clients resolve a challenge, to create something that brought joy and meaning to other people.
But, he would probably say, it was his family that brought him true joy. Bonnie, his wife of 26 years, was his soul-mate, the woman who most appreciated his thoughtfulness and his selflessness. Always putting her needs first, she would say. She was also the woman who most appreciated his quick witted and delightful sense of humor. Not long ago, faced with the reality of his illness, Bonnie was trying to reassure him that she would be there for him no matter what, the proverbial "in sickness and in health." "It's not like I got into this for the trips to Hawaii," she said. He replied, "I got into it for the trips to Hawaii."
And Terry's sister Jane Meador and her husband, Bud, who live here in town and his brother Ron and his wife, Tinker, who live in Dallas. They meant so much to Terry and he to them. Only a week ago Jane and Ron buried their mother Lois. And now a week later their brother. Terry would want you to know and Bonnie wants you to know how much it meant to her, Ron and Tinker, that you stayed here in Kansas City instead of returning to Dallas. And Gary, Ron's son, also from Dallas who is here. And Uncle Bond, Lois' only surviving sibling…you have been so kind to Bonnie and Terry. They want you to know how much you mean to them.
Terry was very close to his family…he spoke to his mother every day. A good, kind-hearted man and a good son.
We can't help but be sad today because of Terry's death, but part of what we do here in this service is to take a moment, reflect and stand in awe of Terry's life…and the way he lived it. To give God thanks for the creative mind
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that Terry had, the inexhaustible spirit of curiosity and inquisitiveness. And the drive to create something that would solve a problem or make someone smile.
And the way in which he went about it all…with patience, putting other people ahead of himself…sometimes to his own detriment. His doctor even noticed that he had a hard time putting his own health first…if someone else needed something and he could do anything about it…he made that a priority. His genuine love for learning and insatiable curiosity and boundless creativity serve to inspire us and will all the days of our lives.
So even in the midst of our very real sadness, we celebrate the life Terry lived. And something even more powerful…the hope of the promise God gives us in the gospel.
The gospel of John says it so well: Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.
To believe in the promises of God means life everlasting…life goes on forever.
Some would say that it is through the legacy that Terry leaves us…spinning things at Science City and kaleidoscopes at Crown Center…to name just a few. And the way in which those of us who knew him will always revere him for not just what he did, but who he was.
But I believe the real power of the gospel is the promise that as fiercely as God loves us in this life, that is how richly God loves us in the next life. And while I can't paint for you an exact picture of what that life looks like, I know it is a place where our bodies are healed and no longer weary and our spirits are rejuvenated and renewed. And time is spent engaging in things that will bring nothing but joy…unbounded, unbridled joy. Can you only imagine what that might mean for Terry? A robotic heavenly choir? A cloud elevator into space? An algorithm for an HD rainbow?
Pretty sure I can't wrap my head around it. But I do know that Terry will be filled with divine happiness and eternal life.
And heaven will never be the same again. Amen.
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Terry was the son of Maurice and Frances Lois (Dutoit) Frederick.
Tribute to Terry (homily given by the Reverend Sandra Cox, St. Paul's United Methodist Church, Lenexa, KS (slightly modified)):
To celebrate the life of Terry Frederick is to celebrate the inquisitiveness of the human spirit. For he was always expanding his mind; always finding something new to learn about.
As a child he read the Bible on his own. Perhaps that is what set the foundation for him to be such a deeply religious man.
As a college student, it was not enough to earn a degree in mathematics…he also became an instructor in BASIC programming, problem solving with computers. Perhaps that is what set for him his lifelong love of finding ways for computers to solve both work related challenges and establish recreational opportunities as well.
Much of Terry's career was given to finding ways computers could make our lives richer and more convenient. He worked on point of sale and credit card processing programs that allow you and I to make hotel reservations, ATM transactions, transfer our mutual funds, and for law enforcement to review, store and catalogue in-car video as well as designing software for wiretapping and law enforcement requirements. He came to file 20 patents in telephony…designs and ideas to enhance our ability to communicate with each other.
Terry became fascinated with engineering and absorbed himself with learning as much as he could. He also came to love playing chess and building robots. In fact, he and engineer John Aker built a robot that played chess…that was featured on a MacNeil/Lehrer PBS technology special.
He truly loved robotics, he was the President of the Kansas City Robotics Society for a couple of years. One of his designs was a robot that learned how to navigate a maze…it's on the floor of his living room right now.
Terry seemed to really enjoy combining two fields, like electronics and art. He found it fascinating that electronics could create art and became an instructor at the Kansas City Art Institute. He developed software that made disparate patterns of lines align and become symmetrical, creating a work of art. He and an associate entered it as an exhibit in a competition in Trondheim Norway and received 3rd place.
Camp Quality was another of Terry's commitments. He brought the robotics team to Camp Quality and helped children with cancer find connections with something that for just a little while would take their minds off being sick and let them just be children for a little while.
Terry seemed to have a fondness for creating something that would invite participation by those who viewed it. Perhaps you have heard of the Spin Thing, a permanent exhibit at Science City in Union Station that is a wonderfully interactive exhibit that interacts with its viewers. He loved to watch people pass by it, generating the spinning thing.
Or his digital kaleidoscope that greets visitors to Hallmark's Kaleidoscope…that creative and interactive exhibit at Hallmark in Crown Center. Terry created a kaleidoscope that uses images from children or visitors looking at it…so they become a kaleidoscopic image themselves.
Do you get a sense of the creative, energetic mind that Terry had?
And how he used it to help us become so in tune with electronics or robotics he is sharing with us or demonstrating for us that we actually become integrated into it! How better to understand something or enjoy it than to become part of it.
That brought Terry a lot of joy. To see his students have an aha moment, to spend hours reading technical manuals so he could help his clients resolve a challenge, to create something that brought joy and meaning to other people.
But, he would probably say, it was his family that brought him true joy. Bonnie, his wife of 26 years, was his soul-mate, the woman who most appreciated his thoughtfulness and his selflessness. Always putting her needs first, she would say. She was also the woman who most appreciated his quick witted and delightful sense of humor. Not long ago, faced with the reality of his illness, Bonnie was trying to reassure him that she would be there for him no matter what, the proverbial "in sickness and in health." "It's not like I got into this for the trips to Hawaii," she said. He replied, "I got into it for the trips to Hawaii."
And Terry's sister Jane Meador and her husband, Bud, who live here in town and his brother Ron and his wife, Tinker, who live in Dallas. They meant so much to Terry and he to them. Only a week ago Jane and Ron buried their mother Lois. And now a week later their brother. Terry would want you to know and Bonnie wants you to know how much it meant to her, Ron and Tinker, that you stayed here in Kansas City instead of returning to Dallas. And Gary, Ron's son, also from Dallas who is here. And Uncle Bond, Lois' only surviving sibling…you have been so kind to Bonnie and Terry. They want you to know how much you mean to them.
Terry was very close to his family…he spoke to his mother every day. A good, kind-hearted man and a good son.
We can't help but be sad today because of Terry's death, but part of what we do here in this service is to take a moment, reflect and stand in awe of Terry's life…and the way he lived it. To give God thanks for the creative mind
continued...
1
2
Next
...continued
that Terry had, the inexhaustible spirit of curiosity and inquisitiveness. And the drive to create something that would solve a problem or make someone smile.
And the way in which he went about it all…with patience, putting other people ahead of himself…sometimes to his own detriment. His doctor even noticed that he had a hard time putting his own health first…if someone else needed something and he could do anything about it…he made that a priority. His genuine love for learning and insatiable curiosity and boundless creativity serve to inspire us and will all the days of our lives.
So even in the midst of our very real sadness, we celebrate the life Terry lived. And something even more powerful…the hope of the promise God gives us in the gospel.
The gospel of John says it so well: Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.
To believe in the promises of God means life everlasting…life goes on forever.
Some would say that it is through the legacy that Terry leaves us…spinning things at Science City and kaleidoscopes at Crown Center…to name just a few. And the way in which those of us who knew him will always revere him for not just what he did, but who he was.
But I believe the real power of the gospel is the promise that as fiercely as God loves us in this life, that is how richly God loves us in the next life. And while I can't paint for you an exact picture of what that life looks like, I know it is a place where our bodies are healed and no longer weary and our spirits are rejuvenated and renewed. And time is spent engaging in things that will bring nothing but joy…unbounded, unbridled joy. Can you only imagine what that might mean for Terry? A robotic heavenly choir? A cloud elevator into space? An algorithm for an HD rainbow?
Pretty sure I can't wrap my head around it. But I do know that Terry will be filled with divine happiness and eternal life.
And heaven will never be the same again. Amen.
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