John D. "Jack" Reardon

“Being Irish, he had an abiding sense of tragedy, which sustained him through temporary periods of joy.” 

(William Butler Yeats)

Jack was born on December 6, 1926 in the rough and tumble neighborhood of Astoria, Queens, which explains his tenacity and distinctive parenting style. He worked a number of jobs as a lad including for the obituary section of the New York Times, a vocation that he has now temporarily passed on to his family. It was during this stage in his life that Jack received a scholarship to New York University, apocryphally owing to his exceptional penmanship (a quality that diminished vastly over the years due to the demands of grading freshman compositions). After receiving his undergraduate degree, Jack attended the University of Connecticut (“UConn”) for a masters in English, and he then completed his Ph.D in American Literature at the University of Kansas where he met the love of his life: a coed named Georgie. From there, the world was their oyster. 

Jack and Georgie were married on July 18, 1953 in Kansas, and eventually they moved to Oxford, Ohio where Jack became a professor of English at Miami University. He taught for over 40 years and peppered his life with adventures, embracing copious travel, most involving his expanding family. These adventures included several Fulbrights, the first one whereby he transported his wife and four children under the age of 9 to Baghdad, an experience indelibly marked in the family’s collective consciousness. No more need be said about that. Other adventures included a Fulbright in Tromso, Norway and several stints as a professor at Miami’s branch campus of Luxembourg. Post-retirement, Jack and Georgie continued traveling, making multiple domestic and international trips, adding to his experiences and, undoubtedly, impacting numerous strangers around the world. Jack also enjoyed his summer trips to their vacation home on Long Island. There, he embraced boating, fishing, experimenting with unique landscaping escapades, and daily long-distance swimming in the ocean. 

Jack was blessed with a passel of offspring, their offspring, and their offspring. His children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren total 44 souls, and he thoroughly enjoyed spending time with all of them. Suffice it to say that Jack and Georgie did their duty when it came to populating the Earth. 

An avid chauvinist, Jack is survived by his patient and loving wife of 71 years, Georgeana "Georgie" (nee Worden) Reardon, and blessed with one son, Jack Reardon (Kelly), and four daughters, Kelly (Hal) Reed, Megan (David) VanWinkle, Amy (Steve) Allison, and Jennifer (Chris) Shymko (all of whom embraced challenging his anti-feminist attitude); dear brother of Rita (the late Dom) Spoto, Alan (Mary) Reardon and the late Roy (Pat) Reardon. 

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in Jack's name to The Salvation Army or the Smithsonian Institute. 

There will be a Memorial Mass for Jack on Saturday, December 21 at 10:00 am, at St Joan of Arc Catholic Church, 5856 Heatherdowns Blvd., Toledo, OH 43614.

There will be a Celebration of Life visitation with service at The Knolls of Oxford 6727 Contreras Rd from 12:00pm - 2:00 on Sunday, April 6. 

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