Frances M. Mathis

Frances Marie (Hesler) Mathis, 92, of Oriskany, passed away peacefully on Sunday, December 7, 2025, at Bethany Gardens Skilled Living Center, surrounded by loving family. Born in Watertown on June 22, 1933, Franny was the daughter of the late Paul and Irene (McCormick) Hesler. A lifelong resident of the Westmoreland area, she was a graduate of Westmoreland Central School and attended Utica School of Commerce. She worked at Vernon R. Evans Office Supply in Utica until her marriage on June 6, 1953 to her high school sweetheart Robert Frank Mathis Sr. They were a truly devoted and loving couple, whose care for each other was an inspiration to all who knew them. To her husband, she was always "Sweet Lips," a name spoken with gentle humor, deep affection, and a lifetime of love behind it.

Franny devoted her life to her family and her faith, never truly retiring from her role as a loving wife, mother, "domestic engineer", and caregiver. She was an active member of the Church of the Annunciation in Clark Mills for over five decades, serving as a trustee, participating in the Altar Rosary Society and Annunciation Family Volunteers, singing in the choir, and sharing her faith as a catechist. Through her example, she instilled a deep devotion to God in her children. In addition to her family and church life, Franny worked alongside her husband Bob in 1990 and 2000 as an enumerator, instructor/evaluator, and crew leader for the U.S. Census Bureau.

She had a generous gift of hospitality and an unmatched ability to make others feel welcome - she could pull off a party at a moment's notice, always featuring her favorite top-hat-shaped ice bucket, putting people at ease with her warmth and kindness. She loved cooking for her family and cherished every moment spent with her children and grandchildren, attending sporting events, concerts, musicals, and graduations with pride and joy. She had the rare gift of making each of her seven children feel like an only child, deeply loved and uniquely special to her.

Music and harmony filled most family gatherings, reflecting a lifelong joy that Franny shared with her children and grandchildren, many of whom became talented performers. She also had a tender heart for all animals and nurtured in her children and grandchildren a curiosity for nature and science. Franny loved gardening alongside her husband, producing bountiful harvests that she preserved through pickling, canning, and freezing - often cheered on by her husband's playful chant of, "Pickle, pickle, can, can!" Even in her later years, she continued to care for others, reflecting her lifelong nurturing spirit. A devoted grandmother, she chose St. Anne, the grandmother of Jesus, as her patron saint. Franny was a "cultivator" in every sense of the word-of vegetables, flowers, children, grandchildren, and anyone in need of care.

Franny is survived by her 7 children and their families, daughter and son-in-law, Deborah and Frank Amuso, and granddaughter, Beth, son and daughter-in-law, Robert Jr. and Brenda Mathis, and grandson, David, son James and grandchildren, Tricia and Betsy, daughter, Laurie, and grandchildren, Kyle and Jennifer, daughter and son-in-law, Mary and Joseph Buchmann, and granddaughter Julianna, daughter and son-in- law, Barbara and Todd Manley, and grandchildren, Jessica, Jason and Jordan, and daughter, Elaine Coney, and grandson, Anthony. She is also survived by one sister Carol Ann Hawkins, of Cocoa Beach, FL, as well as 5 great-grandchildren and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins. She was predeceased by three brothers, Harold Hesler, Paul Hesler and Robert Hesler; three sisters, Kathryn Armstrong, Pat Wall Barrows and Jean Richie; two sons-in-law, Paul H. Yager III and Anthony Coney; and her son's fiancée, Maggie Marcellus.

The family would like to extend heartfelt thanks to the staff of Bethany Gardens for the loving care and kindness shown to Franny during her four years there, and to the staff at Rome Hospital for their compassion and dedication in her final days.

Family and friends are invited to call at Nunn and Harper Funeral Home, Inc., 418 N. George St., Rome, NY 13440, on Saturday, December 13th, from 9-11:00 a.m. A Mass of Christian Burial will follow at 12:00 p.m. at the Church of the Annunciation, 7616 South Street, Clinton, NY 13323. Interment will take place in St. Mary's Cemetery in Rome, NY.

Please consider memorial donations to Church of the Annunciation, 7616 South Street, Clinton, NY 13323 in memory of Frances M. Mathis.