BANGOR – Frances Benedict Graham died Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2008, at her home. The loving care from her team of aides, volunteers and nurses from Community Health and Counseling Service’s Hospice Program, and the many hours of stimulating conversation and companionship with members of her Hammond Street Church family allowed her last weeks to be comfortable, and were of invaluable help to her family. Frances was born in 1920, in Wilton, Conn. She developed her love of nature in the woods and fields of her father’s farm, and her interest in teaching from her mother Margaret, who boarded at the Benedict farm as a young one-room school teacher fresh from Danbury Normal School. It was the job of son, Frank, the contented bachelor, to drive her to school by buggy. They married in 1914. Her dad, Frank, was a fine athlete and, truth be told, his daughter, “Frankie,” was also a jock. She could punt a football in a perfect spiral and never passed up a chance to swim. She was still taking great-grandchildren camping well into her 70s. She married Richard C. Graham in 1941, and they raised their four children in Wilton, Conn. In 1960 Dick entered Bangor Theological Seminary and Fran began teaching, eventually serving in Winterport, Old Town, Newburgh and Hampden. Kindergarten was her favorite grade, but she taught all ages, from nursery school to reading and children’s literature at the University of Maine. Fran will be missed by five generations of family, beginning with her brother, Charles Benedict; and her cousin, Jean Benedict. The second generation includes her children, Nancy and Arthur Morsey, Ginger Graham, Paul and his wife, Kitty, and Bruce; as well as her nieces and nephews. She was grammie to Beverly, Barbara, Andrew, Kelly, Jamie, Jennifer and Jeff. She was great-grammie to Crystal, Amber, Gary, Suzanne, Amanda and Meagan. Her great-great-grandchildren are Matthew, Andrew, Hannah, Leanna, Haylie, Kaileb, Joel and Donny. Her Bangor area nephew, Ed Benedict and niece, Sue Simpson, and their families have been another wonderful part of her life. As she could travel less her local great-nieces, Sequoia, Celeste, Taylor and Jasmine; and her great-grandson, Donny, were a special joy. She was sustained by the faith she shared with her husband and by active, lifelong church membership spanning four decades at Wilton Congregational Church and five at Hammond Street Congregational Church. There will be a memorial service 11 a.m. Tuesday, Dec. 9, at Hammond Street Congregational Church, Hammond and High streets, Bangor. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to her beloved Bangor Nature Club. Many friends, from her doctors to spades and cribbage partners, will be familiar with Fran’s bird-a-thon drives, which helped build a Nature Club scholarship. If you wish to make a direct contribution to the fund: there were seven chickadees, six house finches, a pair of cardinals and a mockingbird at the feeder by her window on the day she died. Contributions to Inez Boyd Scholarship Fund may be sent care of Hank Metcalf, 369 Main St., Orono, ME, 04473.
FRANCES BENEDICT GRAHAM
