Frances Smith Moore
June 23, 1942 – March 12, 2021
Frances Smith Moore, 78, (née Lula Frances Smith) was born June 23, 1942 in Bedford, Virginia and transitioned to her eternal heavenly home March 12, 2021 in Homer. Born the seventh daughter to James and Christine Smith, Fran was 3 years old when she gained a brother followed by three more sisters.
Fran was a curious explorer evidenced by avid reading and endless miles of walking. She cultivated a competitive spirit in school sports which continued over her lifetime playing cards, board games and pickleball. Watching professional tennis inspired her even during the challenging home stretch of her life.
Fran graduated from Bedford High School in 1960 then attended Berea College in Kentucky. She completed a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education. Barring a brief stint living in Washington, D.C, Fran participated in the work-study program unique to Berea College and remained a proud alma mater.
Fran met her future husband Robert Moore through a mutual friend. They married Aug. 14, 1965 in Bedford, Virginia. Their faith and adventurous spirits would guide them to Alaska after living in Boiling Spring, Virginia, and Maryville, Tennessee.
An opportunity to teach at a Christian school in Homer, Alaska beckoned in 1969 and so began the journey of a lifetime. They planned to live one year in the Last Frontier and some 52 years later they had firmly sealed their residency on the lower Kenai Peninsula. Fran adored nature in the Blue Ridge Mountains and her Alaska surroundings including several summers setnet fishing on the west side of Cook Inlet.
Fran and Bob were educators at Nikolaevsk School where she served as a teacher and librarian. Her passion was teaching children to love reading. She retired from Nikolaevsk School in 1996.
Fran donated time through education, foreign exchange programs, Rotary and church. She touched others’ lives through her tender approach to the sanctity of life with volunteer hospice care. She enjoyed writing club and storytelling, and her flower gardens reflected her talents. Fran’s three daughters and five grandchildren were her pride and joy.
Fran is survived by husband of nearly 56 years, Bob Moore; daughters, Shannyn Moore (Gregor Welpton) of Little Tutka, Jeanne (Jason) Kettell of Anchorage, and Bobbi (Pete) Cleary of Homer; granddaughters, Javin Schroeder and Saoirse and Morwenna Cleary of Homer; grandsons, Bruce and Salem Kettell of Anchorage; siblings, Martha Smith of Roanoke, Virginia, Iris Blankenship of Moneta, Virginia, Ann Bruner, Marilyn (Jackson) Overstreet, JW (Mildred) Smith of Bedford, Virginia, Patsy (Kelley) Maxfield of Thaxton, Virginia, and Sybil (Mike) Wray of Bedford, Virginia; siblings-in-law Roger (Becky) Moore of Christiansburg, Virginia, and Joy (Ed) Hawkins of Marion, North Carolina; 37 nieces and nephews; and 107 great and great-great nieces and nephews.
She is preceded in death by her parents, James and Christine Smith; sisters Bevie (Kenneth) Johnson, Jeanette (Greenwood) Overstreet and Trudy Maxfield; brothers-in-law Clyde Smith, Richard Blankenship, and Enoch Bruner; nephew Terry Overstreet; and great-niece Rachael Horton.
Rather than flowers, the family requests donations to Hospice of Homer: https://hospice-of-homer.square.site
Arrangements were by Peninsula Memorial Chapels.
