Paul C. Falcone

Paul Charles Falcone, born in Chicago, Illinois on February 17, 1943, died peacefully in the early hours of July 18, 2020, surrounded by his beloved family. Paul grew up in Chicago and surrounding suburbs through high school and college. He graduated from Proviso East High School in 1960 and from Wheaton College in 1965 with a degree in Chemistry. While working as an architectural draftsman, Paul rediscovered his early love of art. He began a graduate program in visual art at Northern Illinois University where he earned a Master of Fine Arts in Printmaking and design in 1968. From there he moved into teaching at Elgin Community College in Elgin, Illinois.
In 1973 he was united in marriage to the love of this life, Janice I. Brandon, with who he embarked on a life of both adventure and stability, beginning with spending a year in Paris, France where Paul studied art with a well-known printmaker. In 1978 they moved to southeast Missouri, where Paul worked as an independent artist, Director of an art museum in Poplar Bluff, MO, and adjunct instructor of art history at Three Rivers Community College.

After a semester as artist-in-residence at Northwest Missouri State University, Paul began a career as a professor of graphic design and art history at Northwest in 1987. Teaching was another great love as well as painting and drawing, along with trains, model railroading, red sports cars, and his family.

Paul and Janice had two children, Nicole and Christian, who both reside in Maryville, Missouri, and a foster daughter, Claudia Molina, of Kansas City, Missouri. Paul retired as an Associate Professor in 2007 from Northwest and continued working on producing his art, as well as volunteering at his church at Manna Kitchen, the weekly community meal at St. Gregory’s Catholic Church. He was a member of the Northwest Retiree Association and faithful fan of everything Bearcat. He was a life well lived and he was much loved: by his grieving children and family, by his students, by his many nieces and nephews, and by friends from all walks of life.

In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to the Northwest Foundation for the Paul Falcone Memorial Scholarship at Northwest Foundation, 800 University Drive, Maryville, Missouri 64468. For more information, call 660-562-1248.

Paul is survived by his wife of forty-seven years, Janice Brandon-Falcone, and their children, Nicole Falcone and Christian Falcone; his brothers, John (Gloria) Falcone, David (Joan) Falcone, both of Bolivar, Missouri; three cousins, and many, many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents Nicholas Falcone and Madeleine Falcone.

Funeral services will be at St. Gregory’s Catholic Church in Maryville, Missouri, on Saturday, July 25, 2020. Visitation will be the hour before the funeral Mass, from 9:30 to 10:30 AM, at St. Gregory’s and is open to all. The funeral Mass will be private at 10:30 AM.
Services are under the direction of the Bram Funeral Home, Maryville, Missouri.