Glen Alan Duderstadt, 67, Overland Park, Kan., went to be with his Lord and Savior on Wednesday, April 6, 2022, after battling a long illness. He was born on March 25, 1955, in Kansas City, Kan., to Charles and Opal Duderstadt. Glen was the proud older brother to Wayne and Linda.
He shared 32 years of marriage to his amazing wife, Hilary Houghton Duderstadt. Throughout his many successes and his challenges, he was beyond thankful to have Hilary by his side. They had one son, Christopher, with whom he shared many of his passions, especially his love for sports.
Anyone who knew Glen quickly figured out that family, faith and sports meant the world to him. The last sporting event he watched was the Kansas men’s basketball team’s comeback victory over North Carolina in the national title game. There’s no doubt he was overjoyed in the heavens to then see his Chicago Cubs and Kansas City Royals win the first two games of the MLB season the day after he passed.
After graduating from Shawnee Mission Northwest High School in 1973, he quickly immersed himself into the campus life of Ottawa University. He thoroughly enjoyed broadcasting OU sporting events, being active within the University’s music department, and growing his faith while attending OU. Glen earned his Bachelor of Arts in Communications within the Church in 1977. He later became a graduate of the United Methodist Course of Study, an accreditation program for local church pastors.
Upon graduating from OU, Glen was named the sports director of Ottawa’s radio station, KOFO. Along with flourishing as the voice of Ottawa High Cyclones, OU Braves and other area sports teams, he had the pleasure of giving live pre-game reports from Royals Stadium during the Royals’ glory years of the 1970s and 1980s. Remaining in Ottawa after graduation proved to be his biggest blessing, as he ended up meeting Hilary during the spring of her senior year at OU.
Glen married Hilary on August 19, 1989, with hundreds of friends and family members on hand. They went on to call Overland Park, Kan., home and welcomed Christopher to the world on May 22, 1991. After settling in the Kansas City area, Glen spent a good portion of his career working in various customer service roles, including at FedEx from 1997-2013.
However, it was just three years into his tenure at FedEx that he really found his true calling. In 2000, he became a pastor in the United Methodist Church. Over the next 19 years, he became quite familiar with 69 highway, as he traveled to southeastern Kansas to serve congregations in Devon, Mapleton, Arma, Pittsburg, New Lancaster and La Cygne.
Whether it was at church, a ballgame or meal, Glen’s greatest joy was spending time with Hilary, Christopher and the rest of his family. He was preceded in death by his father. Glen is survived by Hilary, Christopher, Opal, Wayne (Cathy), Linda (Kelly), his nephew, Eric (Heidi); his niece, Stacey (Brandon Brown); his great niece, Grace; father-in-law, George Houghton; brother-in-law, Trevor Houghton (Beth); two aunts, two uncles, and several cousins.
Glen, Hilary and Christopher have been and will continue to be thankful for the support of friends, family and medical professionals, especially those at MidAmerica Rehabilitation Hospital, Davita Nall Dialysis Center and the AdventHealth Wound Care Center.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorial contributions to Asbury United Methodist Church (online: https://app.easytithe.com/App/Giving/visitasbury; mail: 5400 W. 75th St., Prairie Village, KS 66208) or Ottawa University (online: www.ottawa.edu; mail 1001 S. Cedar St., Ottawa, KS 66067). Glen’s Celebration of Life will be held at 3 p.m. on Saturday, April 23, at Asbury UMC. The visitation will precede the Celebration of Life, beginning at 1:30 p.m. in Asbury’s welcome center. It will continue after the service with a light supper in the fellowship hall. For those unable to attend, the service will be live-streamed on Asbury’s website https://www.visitasbury.org/