Frances Nollet

1922 - 2022

On the morning of December 17, 2022, our Mom Frances Nollet completed her one hundred year journey here on earth. She died peacefully in her home surrounded by members of her loving family.

Born in Whaleyville, Virginia on June 6th, 1922 – 22 years before it was known as D-Day – she lived the fullest life imaginable for all 100 of her years. Known as Frances or Fran or Mom or Franma or Gigi-Fran, she was the matriarch of our family and was loved by so many   She leaves behind her children; Emmy, Frank, Vann, Rick, Ron, and Alex along with 11 grandchildren, many great grandchildren and friends from all over the world. 

A woman who loved education, she was the valedictorian of her high school class, and graduated from Mary Baldwin College in Staunton Virginia in 1943 as her senior class Vice-President with a degree in sociology. She later became a proud member of the American Association of University Women. After her time at Mary Baldwin, she did social work for the Red Cross during World War II. In 1946 she married Don Weller and moved to Merrick, New York on Long Island where Emmy, Frank and Vann were born In 1964 she married Robert "Bob" Nollet, and his three children Rick, Ron and Alex became part of her family. She returned to college, attending Hofstra University in Hempstead NY where she earned a Masters in Education in 1965. She taught Kindergarten for 20 years – in Merrick, and later in Binghamton New York after moving to that area in 1967. Her claim to fame  as a kindergarten teacher was incorporating her playful spirit and talent on the piano in the classroom, which her students loved.

Though predeceased by her beloved husband Bob in 2004, the two of them had many adventures together. Some of her favorite travels include trips to China, Russia, Scandinavia, Alaska, and the Panama Canal. Fran and Bob loved collecting antiques and treasures from their world travels. They both earned their pilot's licenses and enjoyed flying for fun, and also commuting back and forth from Endwell,New York to Orlando Florida several times a year before moving to Orlando full time in 1990.

There she became a member of the First Presbyterian Church, where she was active in many activities including Stephen Ministry, Meals on Wheels, and Holy Stitches. 

Fran was also an animal lover, and enjoyed the outdoors. She was often found admiring and greeting many dogs on her walks or collecting stuffed animals for her home. Some of her fondest memories were spent blueberry picking with family, cross country skiing, and walking around Lake Eola. She especially loved the Farmer's Market there and all the lovely vendors she got to know.

She had a great love for entertaining and spending time with friends, sharing her southern hospitality and charm. She will be dearly missed by all who knew her.

A memorial service will be held at the First Presbyterian Church in Orlando on February 10th at 11am. Reception to follow.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that donations can be made to two of her favorite organizations:

Gracemedicalhome.org

and

Missiongrammar.org