John Hardesty

John Frank Hardesty, Jr. was born in Baltimore, MD on December 24, 1918 to parents John Frank and Edna (Miller) Hardesty.  Frank, as he was known throughout his life, endured an unstable early home life associated with his parents’ breakup and a continuous change in residence and schools.  At age 16, hoping to get a fresh start and create stability for himself, he showed up at the docks in Baltimore and landed a job “swabbing the decks” on a ship headed to Australia.  He was gone on that voyage for three months. Back in Baltimore, he worked at Crown, Cork & Seal, Maryland Dry Dock, Baltimore Ice Storage, and in other various jobs until the outbreak of WWII.

Frank entered the Merchant Marine Academy in New London, Connecticut, and earned his Merchant Marine Engineer’s license allowing him to work in the engine compartment on merchant vessels.  Throughout WWII, he served on numerous Liberty ships and freighters delivering supplies to the allied troops.  On one occasion in March of 1943, his freighter, the “Staghound”, was torpedoed and sunk by an Italian submarine off the coast of South America.  After spending five days in a life boat, the crew was rescued and delivered safely to Rio de Janeiro for a well-deserved three week break before being reassigned.  After the war, Frank continued his love of the sea, eventually earning the rank of Chief Engineer overseeing engine room operations for several U.S. steamship lines and earning him the affectionate nickname of “The Chief”.  His work on the Liberty ships and other cargo ships took him around the world many times over.

While working with the steamship lines, Frank had a stop-over in New York City where he had minor surgery scheduled at the Monte Fiore Hospital in Staten Island.  It was there that he met the love of his life, Constance Coyne.  Connie was working at the hospital while completing her dietetic internship.  As part of her studies, she was to analyze caloric food intake which made finding a patient with a healthy appetite a smart idea.  It did not take her long to discover that a patient named Frank Hardesty was consistently cleaning his plate.  Shortly thereafter, Connie was assigned to Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore and after a short courtship, John Frank Hardesty, Jr. and Constance Ruth Coyne were married on June 4, 1950 at St. Cecelia’s Catholic Church in Baltimore.

Upon the arrival of their two children, Michael and Carol in 1952 and 1955, respectively, Frank made a career decision to leave his love of sailing around the world in the ship’s engine room to be home with his family and work stateside in another type of engine room.  In 1956, Frank accepted a position as a stationery engineer with Shell Oil Company in Baltimore, where he worked as a “jack of all trades” until his retirement in 1980.

Frank was an avid reader, an accomplished machinist, daily crossword puzzle solver, champion of checkers and cribbage, skilled gunsmith, trap shooter, outdoorsman, pool player, welder, painter, talented photographer, carpenter, knot-tier, car mechanic, and a general “Mr. Fixit”.  To his many friends and neighbors over the years, he was someone who could always be called upon to make something on the lathe, fix a leaking pipe, or give someone or something a lift in his pick-up truck.  At the age of 80, Frank learned to use a personal computer and enjoyed sending numerous email messages (many including jokes and political commentary) to his friends and family.

Frank lived in the same home in Arbutus, Maryland, with his wife Connie, for thirty-eight years until her passing in 1996, and continued to live there by himself until 2014.  After that, Frank relocated to an apartment at Brightview Assisted Living Community in Catonsville, Maryland.  He was loyal to his friends, a good neighbor, a loving father and grandfather, and a devoted husband.  He was remarkably resilient throughout his life, and maintained a positive outlook no matter what challenges life had in store for him. There was never a more trusting, honest, genuine, or generous person than our Dad and GrandDad, or Mr. Frank, or Uncle Frank, or just Frank.

The family thanks you for being with us today and sharing in our father’s long and interesting life.

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Michael (Mike) J. Hardesty (Son) & Denise C. Hardesty (Daughter-in-law)

Carol H. Jacober (Daughter) & Michael (Jake) B. Jacober (Son-in-law)

Grandchildren:  Kathleen Jacober, Daniel Jacober, David Jacober,

Jennifer Hardesty, Michael Hardesty, Mark Hardesty

Great Grandchildren: Alden Tinsley, Leah Tinsley, Aurelia Tinsley