In Memory Of

Mr. Francis X.
Kilgannon
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Service Information

Visitation
Wednesday, May 26, 2021
to
Thursday, May 27, 2021
to
to
A special request;

MASKS REQUIRED TO BE WORN AT ALL TIMES IN THE BUILDING.       -Fairchild Sons-

Obituary

Frank X. Kilgannon, a prominent and popular attorney in the Nassau court system who taught business law at Nassau Community College for more than 50 years, making him possibly the longest running teacher at  Nassau, died on Sunday [May 23] at 82 after a long battle with stroke complications.  

Kilgannon, a member for more than 50 years of the Nassau County Bar Association, was known for his pro bono work in cases involving special education and physically challenged students suing for access to equal educational services. 

He won several landmarked cases related to allocating education funding to physically challenged people, including a 1973 education case – Greve vs. Board of Education – in which the family of a deaf child sued a school district in Nassau County and won the right to the same specialized educational services in a Catholic school as offered in public schools, services that were previously denied to deaf students in NYS.  Frank built upon his success in Greve VS. Boe to continue to advocate for fair and equal education for all students.  

Born to Irish immigrants – his father was a Nassau County police officer -- Kilgannon lived his entire life in Hempstead and West Hempstead.  He attended Chaminade High School and earned a bachelor's degree in business administration. While studying law at New York University he worked for a small accounting firm that handled trust funds for the Kennedy family. 

Even after retiring from his law practice, he continued teaching at  Nassau Community College until his health no longer allowed it in recent years. He often said he enjoyed teaching public junior college students who could not afford expensive four-year colleges.  Kilgannon served as president of the Catholic Lawyers Guild, served on boards for institutions including St. Thomas and Big Brothers/Big Sisters, and coached soccer in the West Hempstead soccer league. He was the first president of St. Thomas the Apostle School Board in West Hempstead.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in memory of Francis to: CARES Foundation and National Alliance on Mental Illness.

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