My Fathers Obituary

Frank Gordon Reeder
Wilmette

A lawyer in the best and truest sense of the word, Frank G. Reeder died Friday, February 19, 2010 by the shores of old Lake Michigan. A life long Chicagoan, Frank lived the majority of his adult life in Wilmette. He died peacefully under the care of Midwest Palliative and Hospice Care Center, an organization with which he had a long relationship. A daughter was with him at the time of his death.

Dad with Nyssa

Frank received his B.S. (Accountancy), with honors, from the University of Illinois in 1957, and his J.D., with distinction, from the University of Michigan in 1962. Frank spent his legal career under the purview of his sole employer, Vedder, Price, Kaufman, and Kamholtz (VPK&K), where he represented and counseled businesses (both closely held and public) and not-for-profit organizations on a wide variety of corporate and business issues. He also represented and advised individuals on various estate and financial planning, tax, real estate and other legal matters. He retired in 1997. Frank was a member of the Chicago, Illinois State and American Bar Associations. Since 1972 he served on the board of trustees and various committees for The Hadley School for the Blind.

Elizabeth, Dad and Nyssa

Frank is survived by his wife Karen, two daughters Laura (Paul) Ciccantell and Elizabeth (Amanda) Reeder, son Gordon (Katy) and four grandchildren, Katie, Jack, Nyssa and Leila; brother John (Rose Ann), and sisters Anne (Dick) Buckley and Mary Kay (Dan) Burke, and their children and grandchildren.

Dad and Nyssa

A special and resolute thank you belongs to Helena Adomaa, who served as care giver, pest, and friend during Frank's last two years. Her efforts cannot be over stated as she helped to broaden and maintain his health. The family wishes to thank all of the attendants, nurses, and doctors who made his struggle as graceful and extended as possible. The process was often unclear, their care not always understood, but their spirit and intelligence were resolute.

Dad and Leila

Frank figured that donations to all of the charities representing all of the ailments he possessed would be too lengthy and confused and so, in lieu of flowers, he respectfully requested donations be made to the Frank G. Reeder Scholarship at the University of Michigan Law School.

Frank's wish was that his final good-bye be filled with joy, so a memorial celebration will be held this summer to coincide with a Cubs home stand and his granddaughters first professional baseball game; about this event he would surely agree, “but you the living, you're stuck here with the Cubs, so it's me, that feels sorry for you.”

Dad, Amanda, Mom

And that is the way he would want it. When the time came that we might feel sorry for him, he knew it was time to go (and true to his nature he arrived at the train station several hours before his ride was due). Fast to laugh and thoughtful with his sense of humor, he was private, logical, and his own best counsel-sometimes a difficult trilogy for a family. But he was kind and giving, and excelled because he walked gently through his day. In death, as in life, we'll continue to hear him calling our names from a long distance away, and wonder, what the hell does he want now? We love you.