Thomas A. “Tony” Soetaert

Tony Soetaert, 80, of Shawnee, KS, passed away, Friday, December 16, 2016.

Tony was born October 1, 1936 in Shawnee to George and Geneva Soetaert. He attended St. Joseph Grade School, St. Joseph High School, and graduated from Rockhurst College.

He was the owner of Soetaert Insurance Agency from 1965 - 1995. He served on the Shawnee City Council from 1974 - 1977 and was elected Mayor in 1977 and served until 1989. He later served on the Shawnee Board of Zoning Appeals from 1995 - 2009.

During his term as Mayor, Shawnee established Sister City relationships with Pittem, Belgium in 1984; Listowel, Ireland in 1985; and Erfurt, Germany in 1993.

Tony is survived by his wife of 55 years, Joyce Soetaert; his children, Julie (Marty) King, Tom (Jamie) Soetaert, and Amy (Ellis) Rainey; brothers, George (Pat) Soetaert and Bobby (Sharon) Soetaert; brothers-in-law, Paul (Joni) Huff and Bill (Rose) Huff; a sister-in-law, Kay Soetaert; and his grandchildren, Haley, Sean, Morgan, Spencer, Sara, Hayden, and Claire.

The family would like to thank LuAnne (Sullivan) Freund, all the staff at Brookdale Rosehill, Brookdale Shawnee, Morningside Place, and Continua Hospice for their loving care.

Visitation will be from 9:30-11:00 a.m., Monday, December 19, 2016, at St. Joseph Catholic Church. The funeral mass will follow at 11:00 a.m. at the church. Burial in St. Joseph Cemetery, Shawnee, Kansas.

The family suggests contributions to St. Joseph Catholic Church building fund, or St. Thomas Aquinas High School.