Harlan “Nick” Newton Reynolds, Jr., was born May 28, 1937, in Horton, KS, because there was no hospital in Hiawatha, KS, where the family lived. He passed away October 31, 2022, in Wellstar North Fulton Hospital in Roswell, GA. He was the son of Harlan N. Reynolds and Katherine D. Zavitz. He was the grandson of Newton Reynolds, former mayor of Hiawatha and owner of Newt Reynolds & Son, General Contractors, builders of commercial and residential buildings in Hiawatha and surrounding areas for over 40 years.

At age 16 Dad married Peggy G. Abbott and had 3 children—Debra (Debi), Dirk, and Darla. They were married for 20 years. He later married Francis Valiant “Val” Powell McBride who brought to their union her daughter Marian. They were married 30 years.

Nick was the name he preferred to go by. He got that name from his grandmother who wanted him to have a “nickname”, hence Nick. The family moved to many places throughout his younger years. His favorite places to live were Palm Springs and Desert Hot Springs, CA. His parents had a pool hall in Desert Hot Spring where he became a very skilled pool player. He worked to pass those skills onto his kids, but only son Dirk came close to Dad- skill level. Dad also cherished his times in Hiawatha and Morrill, KS, around his close-knit family. The Reynolds family has lived in the Robinson, Hiawatha, Morrill, & Fairview area over the past 175 years. The Reynolds extended family are the Peckinpaugh, Zavitz, and Lambertson.

Dad started in the grocery business at 16 that had his family moving from St. Joe, MO, to Atchison, KS, to Topeka, KS—where he became manager of 3 different Safeway stores. He then moved to Hiawatha, KS—his hometown—to open his own IGA store. He then moved to Greenville, MS, then to Jackson, MS, to become a partner in Paper Wholesale of Jackson and where he retired. Then he moved to Brookdale in Roswell, GA, to be closer to his daughter Darla and step-daughter Marian. Darla was his very capable and dedicated caregiver for 5 years until her passing.

Music was dad- first love—attending operas, musicals, leading sing-a-longs at Lions Club meetings (where he also served 2 terms as president), participating and leading in Brookdale sing-a-longs, and having theatrical roles in Oklahoma and Bus Stop while in MS. His next love was poetry. After discovering a poem his grandmother Grace Peckinpaugh Reynolds had written in her teens, he found passion and talent for writing his own poems, sharing with his Brookdale poetry club, family, and friends.

Nick is survived by his brother Steve Reynolds. Daughter Debra “Debi” Eskie (Dennis), step-daughter Marian McBride Stelling (Jonathan), daughter-in-law Laura Reynolds. Granddaughters Leah Eskie (Greg Anderson), Erin Merrill (Fred Curtis), grandson Levi Reynolds (Lexi), granddaughters Shelton and Samantha Stelling, step-granddaughter Ana Saldivar. Great grandchildren Chyler and Chandi Eskie, Evangeline “Evie” and Elise Merrill, and step-great grandchildren Logan and Chloe Schlosser and Miles Guick. Preceding him in death is his first wife Peggy Parker, his wife Val Reynolds, son Dirk Reynolds, daughter Darla Urbantas, dad Harlan Reynolds, mother Katherine Zavitz Reynolds Dawson, and sister-in-law Sue Buhman Reynolds.

The service will be at 11:00 am on April 29, 2023, at the First Presbyterian Church that Grandpa Newt Reynolds built. Nick will be laid to rest at Mount Hope Cemetery following the service. There will be a reception at First Presbyterian Church following the burial. All interested persons are invited.

Donations can be made in memory of Harlan N. Reynolds, Jr., to the First Presbyterian Church of Hiawatha, KS.

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