Francis Walker

Francis Edward Walker, Frank to all who knew him, passed away peacefully on December 13, 2025, in Cheshire, Connecticut. He was born on June 1, 1947, in West Haven, CT, son of the late Harold and Dora Walker.

Loving husband, father, brother, friend, sailor and problem solver, Frank was an artist in all respects. He appreciated creativity, writing, history, design, music, and would read and explore his interests extensively.

Raised on the shore, Frank would forever be shaped by his early experiences on the Sound. He was a member of the Sea Scouts, an organization that would later be designated the official youth program of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary. He played several sports and distinguished himself on the West Haven High School Ice Hockey State Championship team in 1964.

Comedic and observant by nature, Frank could be relied on for a quick joke or pun that revealed his always unique and occasionally cutting sense of humor. He thoroughly enjoyed his music and as a young man began accumulating an extensive collection of vinyl while employed in the Classical Music Department of Tower Records, San Francisco, with The Beatles, Fleetwood Mac, Billy Joel and Johann Sebastian Bach among his favorites. Drawing, painting, cooking, modelmaking and woodworking were all means through which he expressed himself.

As a craftsman and sailmaker, Frank earned praise during his career for his radial spinnaker designs which garnered patents. He was honored to have his sails aboard both cruising and racing boats alike, including that of a United States team that won an America's Cup. He sailed and crewed in a host of competitions including the Newport Bermuda Race, several smaller events, and frequent social contests alongside his friends and family. Later, Frank became a committed long-term employee of U.S. Surgical Corp., retiring in 2013.

Frank is survived by his wife of fifty-five years, Mary Walker, son and daughter-in-law, Sam and Janette Walker, sisters Betty Catelli and Peggy Gaffney, and his two grandchildren, Ian and Ava, of whom he was limitlessly proud. He is predeceased by his eldest brother, John J. Walker.

Family and friends are invited to pay their respects on Monday, December 22, 2025, from 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM at the Alderson-Ford Funeral Home, 615 South Main Street, Cheshire, CT. Interment will be private. In lieu of flowers, the family encourages memorial contributions in Frank's name be made to the charity of your choice. To share a story or leave online condolences, please visit www.fordfh.com and / or www.legacy.com.