Jack Norman-Hodges, 63, of Springfield MO unexpectedly passed away in his home on the morning of September 9th, 2021, due to natural causes.

Jack spent his life being both interesting and interested, and his education and professional life reflected that passion for learning and growing. An arc that included nursing school, manufacturing, and retail management always led back to his career in restaurant management, where he spent many years working for Nicola Gilardi at his restaurants in Springfield, Missouri.

After retirement, he remained active in philanthropic endeavors, donating his time to both non-profit and volunteer organizations.  He served as the president of the Cox Health Auxiliary from October 2018 until his death, volunteering thousands of hours of time toward efforts to improve the services and health of patients.

Jack also ran a local branch of the BirthdayCakes4Free non-profit organization, during which he personally baked and decorated countless cakes for children whose parents were not able to provide one.  He took great pride in learning what each child loved and ensuring that their cakes reflected those details.

He enjoyed good food, terrible reality television, travel, and technology. He was inspired by an episode of "Doogie Howser, MD" to attempt to donate a kidney as a humanitarian gift, the reasoning being that he only needed one and why not help someone else.  After medical testing in St Louis, he was declined for a minor health issue, but even just having attempted such a thing was a testament to what kind of person he was.

He was fiercely loyal to those he loved, friends and family alike, and would drop anything to help anyone at any time.  While he seemed very serious to some, he had an underlying goofy sense of humor that those fortunate enough to really know him got to experience.

The last year of his life he spent as a full-time caregiver for close friends' infant so they could return to work and school without worrying about childcare cost.  His time as a surrogate grandfather brought him daily joy that no paid job ever could.

He and his husband purchased their dream home in Springfield in the Cinnamon Square neighborhood in June.  Jack was able to spend 53 days in it before his passing, but they were the happiest 53 days.

He converted to Catholicism when he was a young man and attended mass regularly at Holy Trinity until his death.  He was a creature of habit and most assuredly was on an aisle adjacent seat near the back at early mass every Sunday.

He is survived by his husband Jason, of Springfield, Missouri; his step-daughters Miranda Norman, of Kansas City, Missouri, and Madeline Norman, of Springfield, Missouri; his daughter Jessica Gentry of Ozark, Missouri; his son Christopher Hodges, of Ozark Missouri; his grandchildren Gabe, Marissa, Constance, Hunter, and Helena; honorary grandson Archer Hendrian; and his beloved dogs Peanut, Cocoa, Teddy, and Mitzi.

He is preceded in death by his mother Margaret Anderson, and Buddy, the best dog that ever was.

Funeral services will be held at 6:00 pm on September 20th, 2021 at Gorman Scharpf Brentwood Chapel in Springfield, Missouri, with Father Patrick Ike Nwokoye officiating.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Autism Speaks organization in honor of his grandson, Gabe, at www.autismspeaks.org