Frances H. Plourde, of Allentown, PA, a former Portsmouth resident, died in her sleep on April 22, 2013 while visiting her daughter in Washington state.
Plourde was born on Feb. 22, 1940 in Fall River, MA, to the late Henry and Frances Winiarski. She grew up in Fall River, summering in the Hummocks, Portsmouth.
She graduated from Mount Saint Mary’s Academy in Fall River in 1957 and from the University of Rhode Island with a bachelor's degree in elementary education in 1961. She then earned her master's degree while teaching.
During her 41 years as an educator, she taught in RI, MA, and PA with 21 of those years at Clearview Elementary School in Bethlehem, PA. Teaching was her calling in life.
Frances married her high school sweetheart, the late James K. Plourde, in 1961. She was a fantastic storyteller and her stories of her life with Jim were both idyllic and amusing.
She liked to travel, sail, swim, knit, read, laugh, sing and dance. Fran lived her mantra to "make everyday count." She was an inspiration to everyone whose lives she touched.
She is survived by her daughters, Alexa Plourde, wife of Andreu Mestre Pinart of Barcelona, Spain, and Amanda Plourde, wife of Jesse Schweickert of Bonney Lake, WA. She leaves her grandchildren, Ruth, Kayla, and Henry and her sisters, Teresa Merrill of Portsmouth, Ann Marie Ross of Holliston, MA, and Virginia Lowney of Norwich, CT.
She also leaves her brother-in-laws, John and Robert Plourde and sister-in-laws Marjorie Webster and Christine Cotsoridis.
After a co-mingling of ashes, a private luncheon was recently held at the Boat House in Tiverton to celebrate her life. Frances was a regular contributor to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, www.stjude.org and Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, www.jdrf.org.
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