Franklin Pierce Eberhard

Franklin Pierce Eberhard was born on February 27, 1940, to Janice and Franklin K. Eberhard in Utah. Throughout his childhood, he experienced many relocations due to his father's military career, which provided him with diverse experiences and the ability to adapt quickly and establish friendships readily. Frank knew how to be a good friend and how lonely it could be when you were the new kid.  He said he didn’t like feeling that way and never wanted someone else to either.

 One notable place he lived was Vienna, where he and his parents resided in a confiscated Nazi mansion. He often recounted a vivid memory from when he was five years old, shortly after World War II ended. While riding a train, he observed a bullet narrowly miss him as it sped past the window.

 He completed high school with honors and continued his education at a college in Virginia. After his first year, his father decided it would be best for him to return to Santa Barbara to attend a local college to curtail his extracurricular activities.

During military training in Colorado Springs, he accepted an invitation from a friend to attend a local church and Sunday School. During this visit, he was invited to a dance that offered free food, which led to him meeting his future wife, Joan Miller. Their courtship was swift, culminating in an engagement and subsequent marriage that lasted for 58 years before Joan passed away on September 23, 2024. The couple moved to California, where Frank began his career with the city of Los Angeles as a City Clerk. Through a series of promotions for his excellent performance he became a City Planner, and eventually became the youngest ever Deputy City Planner, the highest unelected position in the city. 

Dad loved the outdoors and was always ready for the next adventure. He hosted a yearly summer camping trip where he took his grandchildren camping and hiking for one week. So many wonderful memories were made under the stars, surrounded by family.  Every Thanksgiving, Dad insisted on making the turkey and the stuffing, too!  The (Not) Christmas party was always a blast with fun games and delicious food to enjoy. And it didn’t matter if you had turned 21, you would still have to sit at the kids' table.

Frank was a faithful friend and husband; he was Joan’s main caregiver for the ten years she was bed-bound and later in hospice. He was a true example of a servant to his wife and family. Dad had a heart that was generous to a fault; he would give freely and expect nothing in return.  He invested time in his relationships and loved his family fiercely.

He made sure to mail out Christmas and birthday cards each year. He was so good about remembering birthdays and making sure you were celebrated.

He had a fondness for soups, particularly homemade split pea soup. He was also enthusiastic about Spumoni and Kirkland vanilla ice cream, often indulging in late-night snacks around 3:00 a.m. 

Frank and Joan are survived by their four children: Monica (Robert) Carr, Frank (Anna) Eberhard, David (Mimi) Eberhard, and Barbara Eberhard. Ten grandchildren: Jennifer, Kristen, Joshua, Elise, Skylar, AnnaMarie, Genevieve, Jedidiah, Samuel, and Zoe, and six great-grandsons: Johnny, Asher, Jason, Jack, Ezra, and Callum Franklin.