"I was a graduate student from Dr Nagle's lab in 1979. I went to study in Wisconsin, not speaking english very well. He got me there. He was always so much understandable. Never really had the chance to tell him how much I appreciated his support. Thank you Dr."
In loving memory of
Francis J. Nagle
July 1, 1924 - August 15, 2014
Madison, WI - Francis Joseph Nagle went home to be with his Lord and Saviour on August 15, 2014. Born in 1924, Fran celebrated his 90th birthday on July 1. Beloved husband and father of 11 children, Fran is survived by his wife Edna and children Michael Moran (Glennda), Tom Moran (Lori Grant), Susan Moran (Gary Johannsen), Patty Nagle, Dennis Moran, John Moran (Deb), Ann Clark, Kevin Moran (Melissa), and Daniel (Gretchen). Son John Nagle and daughter Erin Moran preceded Fran in death. His grandchildren (and great-grandchild!) brought him much pride and joy: Kathleen Gasper (Brian and son Clayton), Colleen Moran, Michelle Moran, Dan Bielke, Kristina Bielke, Tyler Nagle, Grace Clark, Ella Clark, Elise Moran, Alec Moran, Julia Moran, Shawn Selvaag, Mary Nagle and Frank Nagle.
Fran led an active, faithful and humble life. He was born to Irish immigrants, John and Mary (Reen) Nagle, and raised in Lynn, Massachusetts, along with his siblings John Nagle, Mary Clement, Ann Moriarty, and Gerald Nagle; all have pre-deceased him. Fran, known to everyone in Lynn as 'Wank', was recently inducted into St. Mary High School's Athletic Hall of Fame. He joined the Army Air Corps in WWII and during his first mission as a radio controller on a B24 Bomber, was shot down and became a prisoner of war for the last three months of the war. His camp was liberated by General Patton himself.
His athletic career blossomed after the service; he attended the University of Massachusetts--Fort Devans and, having never played football, wound up the quarterback of the football team in 1947 and '48 seasons. He followed his coach at Fort Devans out to Lincoln, Nebraska and played quarterback for the Cornhuskers in 1949 and 1950. He was selected to play in two All Star games and the Senior Bowl Game. He was selected by Philadelphia Eagles in 1951 and played one season of professional football for the Montreal Alouettes before injuries and a desire to be closer to family, ended his football career.
Fran married the University of Nebraska's 1950 May Queen, Virginia Koch. They were happily married until she succumbed to breast cancer in 1967. He married Edna Lange Moran a year later and together they created the large family that they raised in the Blessed Sacrament Parish in Madison, WI. Fran was never hesitant to share his faith, his virtuous character or his abundant love with his adopted children, his step-children and his son.
Dr. Nagle taught physiology at the UW-Madison for many years. He also co-founded and directed the Bio-Dynamics Lab on campus and encouraged many cardiac patients to enhance their recovery with exercise. He also mentored graduate students throughout the years. Many of them became an extended part of the Nagle-Moran family through holiday dinners and social gatherings at the family home.
Fran's academic career afforded international teaching opportunities that he and Edna thoroughly enjoyed. Highlights included extended stays in Brazil and India.
Fran and Edna have lived recent years in retirement and assisted living communities where they continued socializing with family, friends, old neighbors, golf buddies, UW colleagues, members of Blessed Sacrament Parish, and the Shamrock Club, to name a few.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, August 22, 2014 at BLESSED SACRAMENT CATHOLIC CHURCH, 2115 Rowley Avenue, Madison with Fr. Patrick Norris, O.P. presiding. A visitation will be held from 10:00 a.m. until the time of service at church.
Memorials may be made to Wisconsin Parkinson Association, 945 N. 12th St., Ste. 4602, Milwaukee, WI 53233.
The family wishes to extend gratitude to the caring staff at All Saints Assisted Living and Agrace Hospice. The loving assistance they provided Fran, and family members during the last days, will never be forgotten.
Tributes
"Thank you to all who have kindly shared their memories and sentiments. My Dad was such a great, fun loving, kind, unselfish, ethical, deeply religious in faith, humble and truly loving man, mentor and father. Your stories help me to realize I won the jackpot! I knew it and was lucky enough to have the time to tell him so. I'm a lucky girl. He will be deeply missed. He took a little piece of my heart away with him. I'm such a better person for all the gifts he passed on to me. Love forever and always ...."
"What can I say??????????? I sure as blazes would not be where I am now without Dr. Fran Nagle pushing me!!!! My wife perhaps said it best - gracious - to describe him. Except when he was playing broom hockey or coaching his son's soccer team. Then, not so gracious, but definitely entertaining!!! The world, the profession, the university, and the family have "lost" an incredible force. But remember - what the heart has known, it cannot forget. "
"Besides being brilliant, Dr. Nagle was a kind and welcoming professor. He lead by example and never let a data-point go undiscovered! I remember playing badminton with fellow students at cook-outs that he and Edna put on. His leadership was exemplary. To Edna and the family, my deepest sympathies."
"I owe Dr. Nagle so many thanks because I was able to learn about Exercise Science at the Biodynamics Lab. Dr. Nagle was instrumental in having me hired as its Lab Manager. I am forever grateful. He was the best "boss" a person could work for due to his honest, caring, and professional way of doing things. He was so very patient, supportive, and helpful as I learned that position. I met many wonderful people through that experience and it was all because Dr. Nagle was involved in my being hired. Our thought are with you and your family."
"Fran Nagle. An important figure in my life - first as an extraordinary mentor and then as a friend. Fran Nagle welcomed me to Madison in August 1966 by meeting me outside the football stadium where the Biodynamics Laboratory was located when I first arrived as both a foreigner and stranger to Madison and I was happy that my wife and I saw him most recently early this Spring when he looked well. His humility, his sense of humour, his patience, his experience, and his wisdom were always an example. Fran had that knack of making most things fun - not everything as a student, mind you. His impact was fully experienced by his many students all of whom, I am sure, are better off for having known Fran as both an educator and personal friend. I certainly am. Our deepest sympathies to Edna and the entire family. May you rest in peace, Fran."
"> > > For those of you who may be hearing or reading this letter, my name is Geoff Nagle, son of Jack and grandson of John - Fran's brother. > > > > I was very upset to hear about the news of Fran's passing from the other side of the world, thousands of miles away. I was equally disappointed to not be able to pay my own respects and attend the celebration of his life in person. I wanted to capture a few of the memories I had of Fran, Uncle Wank, or even as some of you knew him..Wanky. > > > > I knew about the man, Fran Nagle, way before I ever met the man in person. I always remembered hearing about my grandfather's brother, a tall athletic, handsome young man, who was this legend of a person, a quarterback at Nebraska, a doctor at UW-Madison, war hero and former POW---quite the resume for 90 years on this earth. As a young kid, I always knew of the Nagle's of Boston, or Wisconsin, or Arizona, as stops on my grandparent's annual US tour which somehow was always navigated in a massive Lincoln town car, packed with golf hats, Bea's hermetically sealed food, dozens of vitamins, and gifts for my brother and I. > > > > My personal experience with Uncle Wank was short but certainly memorable and one I will never forget. I had always idolized my own grandfather growing up, I had always loved to tell people how he once played baseball for the Braves, although I never included which Braves he actually played for. My grandfather and I had a true obsession for sports, one that I still carry today; he would send me memorabilia that was signed by Babe Ruth or Ty Cobb, yet came in a plastic wrapper accompanied by other coupon giveaways like change holders, key chains, lint rollers, or other "As-seen-on TV' products, it didn't matter to me. > > > > At the end of my senior year of high school, I lost my grandfather, it was one of those losses that really hits you, especially for a young person. It was through the loss of my grandfather that I met Wank for the first time that I could really remember; it was weird to think that the end of my relationship with my grandfather signaled the beginning of one with his brother. > > > > I remember that day like it was yesterday, I could hear his voice walking in the house, he was my grandfather's twin, they spoke the same, they had the same mannerisms, they even shared the same contagious laugh. I remember being drawn in by his presence, I couldn't get over the resemblance, I couldn't get over the stories and I selfishly couldn't stop thinking that I had a part of my grandfather still on this earth. I remember sitting there with Mark, Mary, and Wank and reminiscing about Nagle history. My brother and I couldn't believe how much interest he had in knowing more about us, our lives, our interests, college plans and most importantly football. Once we knew football sparked a special interest, we sat there for hours watching the same high school football tape over and over again; I think Mark wanted to burn the tape at loop #5. > > > > It felt like we sat there for hours, he was articulating various professional statistics of baseball players, knew current players that I couldn't even name--it was a memory I will always remember, it felt like it lasted days. > > Wank was truly a special person, I was always captivate d by the very few moments I had with him; we had the opportunity of spending a few reunions with him and we always made it a point to hear more about his legend, the personal accounts and stories. His legend will truly live on with the many stories, experiences, and loving family to carry on his legacy. May you rest in peace Fran, you were truly an inspiration. "
"Fran will be throwing passes to the angles in heaven and his completion rate will be 100%. It was a joy working with he and Edna at the St.Vincent DePaul pantry.They were committed to the mission and fun to be with"
"A teacher lives on through his students. Prof. Nagle was the one who made it possible for me to come and study at UW-Madison. My wife and I owe both Dr. and Mrs. Nagle so much. We were very much a part of the extended Nagle family during the time we were there. He was the best mentor a graduate student could ask for and I have tried earnestly to emulate his example in my own academic career. During Badger get togethers at our national ACSM conferences we have often reminisced about how fortunate we all were to have had the privilege of knowing a man of his caliber. Above all, I was always touched by his humility. He is remembered fondly and respectfully in our family."
" I was very sorry to hear of Fran's death. He was a very important part of my life, not only from the perspective of me becoming a university professor, but also, becoming a man. I was lucky throughout my education and professional life to have great advisors and mentors to point me in the right direction. One thing they had in common was being members of the "Greatest Generation." I don't know if the experience of being at war as young men is what shaped their approach to life and how they handled life's adversities, but I was the lucky recipient of their intellect, patience, wisdom and value system. Fran was my advisor and mentor during my Ph.D. program at the UW from 1965-69. I look back on those years as some of the happiest in my life, learning what I loved to do and being surrounded by those who had the same passion. I learned how to teach and to value teaching by watching Fran prepare and deliver lectures. He invested himself in his teaching and it showed. I learned to write and edit by being the recipient of Fran's comments and suggestions on how to write clearly and succinctly. I learned to do and enjoy research by being directly involved in numerous experiments that made life so enjoyable in the lab. Fran's guiding hand was in the process throughout. Fran's support and encouragement continued throughout my career. Fran's love of family and making students feel a part of his family was a model that many of us carried away from Madison, along with our degrees. He will be missed by his many students, colleagues and friends whose lives he touched in so many ways. I offer my deepest sympathies to the family and know that Fran is now at peace. "
"Fran was quite a guy. I first met him at a meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), and he was a leading figure in the development of ACSM. It has become the top exercise science and sports medicine organization in the world, and Fran played a key role in its development. He was a valued and supportive colleague for over three decades at UW-Madison. We were both "brown baggers", and we met over our brown bag lunches for the better part of a semester discussing the development of a course titled "Psychology and Physiology of Maximum Performance." This became a very popular graduate course for both exercise physiology and sport psychology graduate students. Thoreau said that "A job well done is done forever", and that describes Fran. This may sound like hyperbole, but I cannot think of Fran in any other way. I should also mention that Fran and Bruno Balke founded the Biodynamics Lab at UW-Madison, and this became a center of academic excellence with worldwide recognition."
"I don't know any words that could be strung together to describe such a man. I can only say he was truly someone any man would want to model himself after. We were blessed to have been neighbors and great friends for many years. We'll miss you Fran! Our prayers are with Edna and the clan (as she calls it)! Phil Karen Vince & Chris"
"His life, his love, his faith, his commitment, his accomplishments....way too difficult to put into words that could even come close! Fran was truly an amazing man, father, husband, uncle, grandpa, colleague, and friend. All of us who knew him will forever be blessed by his life and his memory. RIP, Daddy!"