Obituaries

Frances Pierce

Frances Pierce, 91, died peacefully with daughter Susan at her side on March 10 in Napa, Calif., after battling Alzheimer’s. She was predeceased in 1988 by her husband of 47 years, Leonard Walter Pierce, and in 1958 by her daughter Marcia.

Fran grew up in Hawthorne, N.J. After marrying, she and Len shared a two-family house there with Len’s parents, then moved in 1950 with their first three children to Midland Park, where they lived for over 30 years.

Happy and outgoing, Fran had many interests and talents: singing, painting, hooking rugs, sewing and gardening. Fran loved animals; there were always pets in her households. She followed in her mother’s footsteps as a wonderful cook.

She loved the beaches and waters of Long Island, first vacationing in North Sea, then retiring to Water Mill and Jamesport, where she spent more than 20 years.

Fran moved in 2009 to an assisted living facility in Napa until a hospitalization caused her to relocate to the Nazareth Rose Garden in February 2012.

She is survived by three of her four children: David Pierce and wife, Elizabeth, of Lake Ariel, Pa., Susan FitzGibbon of Napa and Linda Sacripanti and husband, Steve, of North White Plains, N.Y.; seven grandchildren: Michael and Jessica Pierce, Douglas and Heather FitzGibbon and Katie, Steven and John Sacripanti; four great-grandchildren: Brad and Hayden Pierce and Jeffrey and Brendan FitzGibbon; and a great number of nieces and nephews.

A loving mother, grandmother, aunt and friend, Fran will be truly missed. Funeral services were private; a memorial service will be held later in the year.

This is a paid notice.