Harlan L. Berland

He grew up and attended school in Damar, then continued on to further his education at Fort Hays State where he met his wife, Sandra. He was an active member of the Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity and graduated with a bachelor’s degree. Harlan and Sandra were married in Hays, KS on August 29, 1959. Harlan continued his education, later receiving his master’s degree from North Carolina State University.

Harlan was committed to service in all areas of his life. He served in the Army during the Korean War. Following, he worked for IBM for 30 years. Among other accomplishments at IBM, Harlan was part of the team that developed the first bar codes for supermarket products. Later, Harlan was an active real estate agent in Kansas City.

Harlan was committed to serving the Catholic Church and the people of Kansas City. To some, he was the “super volunteer” who could always be counted on to help with food drives, clothing drives, anything that needed to be done. To some, he was “Mr. Socks” of St. Mary’s Food Kitchen, who procured food for the people who visited St. Mary’s and made sure they had clean, warm socks. To some, he was the “back door trader” who brokered food for the food pantries of the Catholic Charities, sometimes driving up in his old Cadillac to haul extra soup from one pantry to trade for extra green beans at another pantry, just to make sure everyone had enough.

He was committed to making sure everyone had something to eat, even if it was just peanut butter and crackers. To some, he was the night school teacher for servicemen at Richards-Gebaur Air Force Base. To some, he was Chief Sitting Bull, Chief of the Arapahoe Nation for YMCA Indian Guides. To many, many people, he was “Santa Claus,” visiting school children and local events to share joy and cheer for Christmas.

He was an active member of the Church of the Nativity, where he was involved in the Men of Nativity. Additionally, he was a member of both the Chamber of Commerce in Overland Park and a Knight of the Fourth Degree of the Knights of Columbus.

Harlan spent his last year on Earth documenting his favorite memories on a blog which he called “Christ Moments.” He wrote about things such as traveling, fishing, memories from his childhood, and the ways he saw the Lord in his daily life. Every blog was finished with the motto “I want to make it to heaven, and take as many people that I can with me,” signed “your brother in Christ.” Those who knew Harlan can confidently say that Harlan knew and loved the Lord well and is surely rejoicing in heaven as he wrote about.

Harlan is survived by his wife, Sandra Boos Berland; his seven siblings, Roberta Bandt, Paul Berland, Carolyn Dreiling, Doug Berland, Vincent Berland, Debra Pfannenstiel, and Brian Berland; his sons, Kevin Berland of Foley, AL and Russ Berland (Denise) of Lawrence, KS; his four grandchildren; and is preceded in death by his parents, Alverize and Blanche Berland.

A rosary will be held on Friday, December 8 at McGilley’s at 12301 State Line Road, Kansas City, MO at 5:00 pm and a visitation will follow from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm. A funeral mass will be celebrated on Saturday, December 9 at Church of the Nativity, 3800 W. 119th Street in Leawood, KS from 10:00 am to 11:00 am. followed by burial at Resurrection Catholic Cemetery at 83rd & Quivira in Overland Park, KS; luncheon will follow at Nativity.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a contribution in Harlan’s name to Villa St. Francis https://www.villasf.org/ or Ladies of Charity http://ladiesofcharitykc.org/.