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Meeting ID:  886 8773 9739

Passcode:  748159

Francis Xavier Pfeiffer, 85, of Mount Laurel, New Jersey and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania passed away peacefully on January 11th, 2025.

Frank was born in Philadelphia in 1939 to Joseph and Alice (McLaren) Pfeiffer. Throughout his life, he was a proud Philadelphian. He enjoyed spending time studying the city archives, tracing his ancestors' arrival in Philadelphia. He had a remarkable knowledge of the City's streets and neighborhoods: he could give you directions to anywhere in the city, tell you where to park, and would throw in his advice on the best bakery or candy shop along your route.

He was raised in St. Timothy's parish in the Mayfair section of the city. There, he developed his love of sports, and on the baseball and football fields he made life-long friends. He was a gifted baseball player on the Artisans baseball team and continued to play in various leagues as an adult. He was a member of the first '4 full years' graduating class of Father Judge High School in 1957. He went on to graduate from the Pennsylvania State University in 1961. He was a die-hard Nittany Lions fan and only missed 1 home football game during his years in Happy Valley. His love for Penn State led to him being a lifelong benefactor and fan of the Nittany Lions.

Returning home to Philadelphia after graduation, Frank served in the US Army Reserves and worked for the US Navy for 35 years where he was a well-known and highly respected Training Director and Naval Civilian Personnel Officer.

Frank married the love of his life, Cathy, in 1965. In their 59 years of marriage, Frank and Cathy built a family of four children, nine grandchildren, and they most recently welcomed their first great grandchild. Together, Frank and Cathy traveled the world, babysat for thousands of hours, and cheered for all of the Philadelphia sports teams (a true Philly sports fan, Frank was known to boo those teams on occasion too). Frank supported his grandchildren's interests, rooting for them at countless football, basketball, soccer, lacrosse and outdoor deck hockey games - even in the winter! - and proudly attended their art exhibitions, dance recitals, piano recitals, school plays, and Boy Scout ceremonies.

For nearly 50 years, Frank served as a lector, Eucharistic Minister, and member of the Finance Committee at Our Lady of Calvary parish, where he attended Mass with devotion and conviction.

Frank was preceded in death by his beloved sister, Joan Karpowicz, sisters-in-law Sr. Josephine ("Jodie") Hynes, RSM and Sr. Margaret ("Peg") Hynes, SSJ, compadre/brother-in-law John Nelis, nephew Johnny Nelis, Jr., and niece Eileen Nelis.

Frank's loving and generous heart will be deeply missed by his family: wife, Cathleen, children Joseph (Janice), Eileen Cannistraci (Salvatore), Karen Angelucci (Marc), and Matthew (Kimberly Carson), grandchildren Alecea (Brandon), Sean, Peter, Gabrielle, Mia, Emily, Gage, John, Annie and his great-grandson, Travis. He is also survived by his dear sisters-in-law Mary Nelis and Patricia Hynes, step grandson Kevin Calvert (Tara) and their children Jaxon and Abby, as well as many cherished nieces, nephews, and cousins.

On Friday, January 17th, there will be visitation at 9:30 a.m. followed by a Mass of Christian Burial beginning at 11 a.m. at Our Lady of Calvary Church, 11024 Knights Road, Philadelphia. In lieu of flowers, Frank's family would be honored by donations made in his memory to Penn State's THON Memorial donations (https://donate.thon.org/) or the Father Judge Alumni Association (https://www.friendsoffatherjudge.com/give.html)