Fred Stanley Kardon

Seabrook Island, SC - Fred Kardon, former newspaper editor, reporter and photographer, died December 26, 2010 at the Medical University of South Carolina after a courageous battle with acute myeloid leukemia.

Born in Boston in 1940, Fred was the son of Jack and Rose Kardon. He was a 40-year veteran of the newspaper business, starting as a freelance photographer and reporter for the wire services and small daily papers in Massachusetts. He worked for 25 years for the Worcester (MA) Telegram & Gazette in various positions including reporter/photographer specialist, photography and graphics editor, lifestyle editor, city editor and news editor.  He won more than 40 major journalism awards, and was named "Master Reporter" by the New England Society of Newspaper Editors.

He later served as editor-in-chief of Beacon Communications, a group of 16 papers in the Greater Boston area; executive editor of The Pantagraph in Bloomington IL; and vice president and editor-in-chief of The Daily Record in Baltimore, MD. As a principal of Kardon Communications, he was a management and marketing consultant, leading seminar sessions for the American Press Institute and press associations throughout the country. After retirement, Fred found a new vocation in golf, serving as a starter for the Ocean Course on Kiawah Island, SC, where his sense of humor and "Bah-ston" accent won him many new friends.

Fred is survived by his wife, Sharen Kardon of Seabrook Island; his mother, Rose Kardon of Palm Harbor, FL; and two children from a prior marriage to Rebecca S. Kardon of West Boylston, MA, a son, Scott Kardon, and his wife Vicki of Los Angeles, and a daughter, Rachel Schmoyer, and her husband Tim of Springfield, VA. He also leaves a brother, Mel Kardon, and his wife Nancy of Cape Coral, FL; a sister, Helen Tobin of Belchertown, MA; a stepdaughter, Heather Abbott, of Fort Thomas, KY; five grandchildren, two nieces and two nephews. He was predeceased by his father, Jack Kardon, sister-in-law, Margaret Kardon and brother-in-law, Ed Tobin.

A memorial celebration of his life is planned for January. In lieu of flowers, gifts can be made to the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) Bone Marrow Transplant Fund, 18 Bee Street, Charleston, SC  29425.

ARRANGEMENTS BY J. HENRY STUHR, INC., DOWNTOWN CHAPEL.