Reginald Frank Bain

Reginald Frank Bain passed away on January 30, 2026, surrounded by his loving family. Reginald was born in Los Angeles, CA on October 29, 1934, to the late Reginald and Carrie Elizabeth Bain (Meyers). He is survived by his beloved children Reginald (Erin Keefe), Laura (Christopher Casieri), and Sharon (John Petersen), and IO grandchildren: Reginald (Sarah), Connor, Quentin, and Ian (Sixin); Nicholas, Jonathan, and Caroline; Matthew, Daniel, and Michael. He was predeceased by his loving wife, Georgia Ann Weber Bain on May 5, 2005. 

An only child, Reg spent his early childhood traveling every Saturday with his mother on the trolley to the movie theatre where he fell in love with the transformative power of cinema. When the family moved to Phoenix, AZ, he worked with his dad in the family furniture business cutting wood frames for upholstered furniture. Reg loved his years at St. Mary's Catholic High School where he served Mass, read Shakespeare, acted in the school theatre productions, and was a cheerleader, an award-winning speaker, and elected student council president. 

The first in his family to go to college, Reg chose the University of Notre Dame. His mother sold her wedding ring to pay tuition, a sacrifice she gladly and proudly made to continue his Catholic education. At Notre Dame, he studied theatre and literature, and it was there, on the lawn in front of Washington Hall that he met his wife Georgia, immediately falling in love with her. They were in many plays together, some of which Reg directed, beginning a lifetime of collaborations. 

After graduating from Notre Dame in 1957, Reg served in the Army Medical Service Corp. He completed his Master's Degree in Theatre at the University of Arizona in 1961 and accepted a position at Regis College in Denver, CO, where he taught theatre and coached the speech and debate team. Regis was his proving ground and his laboratory. Reg joined the faculty of Notre Dame in 1966 while completing his doctorate at the University of Minnesota in 1972. 

A professor of theatre at the University of Notre Dame for nearly 40 years, Reg had a profound impact on countless Notre Dame and St. Mary's College students. In his early years, Reg served as department chair and ran the Notre Dame Summer Theatre program, providing an immersive summer theatre experience for his students while bringing plays and musicals to the South Bend community, including participatory children's theatre productions that were attended by thousands of school children. He strongly believed that theatre could, and should, take place anywhere. 

Directing and teaching were Reg's true passions. Reg was a recipient of the Rev. Arthur S. Harvey, C.S.C., Award, given to a University of Notre Dame alumnus in honor of outstanding achievements in the performing arts. The award's inscription reads: "Professor Reginald F. Bain (Class of 1957), whose passion for the theatre was kindled as a student in Washington Hall and who has in turn skillfully and devotedly guided students for four decades, inspiring them with a love of the stage and an enlightened sense of themselves and the world around them." A mentor to generations of students, his advice to young teachers looking to find their voice was, "Teach yourself!" 

Reg and Georgia were able to enjoy their early retirement years together traveling to explore the majestic national parks of the western US, the natural beauty of Hawaii, the castles and cathedrals of France, and the historical and storied countryside of Scotland (the roots of Reg's paternal ancestry). They also traveled to the eastern US extensively to be with their children and grandchildren in South Carolina and New York. They deeply loved their children and their spouses, and their grandchildren. Reg made sure that he was close with each grandchild, sharing his life stories and passions with them, making sure to experience their lives as much as possible and to learn from each one of them. He kept the tradition of their beloved grandmother alive sending Valentine's Day, Easter, and Halloween baskets filled with Fannie Mae and South Bend Chocolate Factory treats every year to each grandchild, even into their college-years. He sought out the perfect card and book for each grandchild for Christmas, collections which they all treasure. He traveled to every grandchild's graduation, as well as countless youth baseball and football games, concerts, art shows, recitals, and theatre productions across Indiana, South Carolina, and New York. Reg was passionate about his ancestry, even traveling to Prince Edward Island where the Bain family settled from Scotland. A die-hard Cubs and Notre Dame football fan, he was equally at ease talking sports, politics, theology, music, art, science, math, and theatre with his son, daughters, their spouses, and his grandchildren. Reg touched many lives and he truly did enlighten so many with a sense of ourselves and an interest in the world around us. He will be deeply missed. 

Reg is now reunited in heaven with Georgia, the love of his life. "To die, to sleep; To sleep; perchance to dream; ay, there's the rub; For in that sleep of death what dreams may come." (Shakespeare, Hamlet, Act 3, Scene I) 

A Celebration of Life Service for Reg Bain will be held on Saturday, May 30, 2026 at 11:00am EST at St. Augustine Catholic Church located at 1501 W. Washington Street, South Bend, IN. Reg will be interned with his beloved wife, Georgia Weber Bain at 1:00pm EST at Cedar Grove Cemetery located at the University of Notre Dame, 100 Cedar Grove Cottage, Notre Dame, IN.

In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to the Center for the Homeless, 813 S. Michigan St., South Bend, IN 46601, . 

Palmer Funeral Home - Hickey Chapel is assisting the family with arrangements.

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