On his 66th wedding anniversary and in his 93rd year, Frank
passed away at his wonderful residence of Passamaquoddy Lodge in St.
Andrews, New Brunswick.
Born in Chatham, New Brunswick then moving to Fredericton
where Frank attended Smythe Street School for Grades 1 to 8 and he
went on to Fredericton High School until 1945. In 1945 the family
moved to Toronto and in June 1946, the family moved to Vancouver until
August 1947 which then the family made a move back to Fredericton and
then the family made a final move to St Stephen in January 1947. Frank
finished his final year of high school at St. Stephen High School with
the class of 1948. In his early years, Frank was a member of the Air
cadets 1944 in Toronto to 1947 in Vancouver.
A dancer at heart, he met Jeanne Pomeroy at the Island View
Dance Hall in Bayside on a Tuesday night and they danced up a storm so
the following Tuesday he picked her up, met her parents and their
relationship began with them marrying in 1955 on October
22.
Avid duck hunter, fly fisherman, choir singer, dancer,
curler, sports fan, amazing reader, story/joke teller and amazing
husband of Lola (Jeanne) Pomeroy, father, grandfather,
great-grandfather, brother, brother-in-law and uncle.
Predeceased by his parents – Harry (Guppy) Richards and
Beulah ‘Anna’ (Heckbert) and only sibling
Elizabeth (Liz) and her husband, Donald (Digger)
McAdam.
Leaving many fond memories with his wife – Lola Jeanne
(Pomeroy) Richards who resides at Passamaquoddy Lodge; two sons –
Steven Richards (Denise Lord) and boys and Bill Richards (Veletia
Johnson) and girls. The grandchildren – Jeff (Kayla), Cody (Laura),
Malika (Chris) and Madalyn; and great-grandchildren (Jeff) – Connor,
Logan & Malia.
Coming from a very small family, Frank also left many
memories with his only sibling and sister, Liz’s family –
Pat, Scott, Jim & Debbie and their families, as well as, his
only brother-in-law – Jim (Mary) Pomeroy of Oakville, Ontario, along
with their two daughters – Suzanne & Stephanie and their
families.
Frank wanted to be a minister in his early years, and his
love of God never wavered. Frank loved to sing and was always happy to
be in the church choir where he sang for many years and most recently
he sang a solo last year at Easter at Passamaquoddy.
Frank worked with his dad at the Queen’s Laundry
and he went on to work as an insurance agent for Metropolitan Life
Insurance until he was hired at Immigration then he went to work at
Canada Customs. He worked at Canada Customs & Immigration for
many years and retired in 1994. He was known to some locals as
“Flag’ em Frank” as he waved them on through the
border occasionally. He retired his badge # 1629 and then
took up many leisure activities. Frank was active in the community and
had many friends.
While the boys were growing up Frank and Jeanne had a trailer
at Sunrise Shores for the summer duration until the late
80’s where lots of fun and many friendships were made and
still remained.
Frank loved sports and was watching the Red Sox games last
week. He and Jeanne were competitive curlers. He was a daily golfer up
until a few years back. He remained active until the past few years
golfing well into his 80s. He hit a straight ball but never
very far. Frank was also a number one fan for the St. Stephen Sabres
baseball team and fundraising advocate for the team, even attending
the golf tournament this past summer where he was thrilled to see so
many of the guys.
Frank was not always handy but he was willing to help when
and how he could and he lived his life to the fullest. He
kept busy and Jeanne kept him busy as well. They helped with Meals on
Wheels and Relay for Life as well as other community events. Frank was
the last living member of the St. Stephen original Luxor Shrine clown
unit and, in his later years, he was an active member of the St.
Stephen Legion up until going to the Lodge.
Frank and Jeanne enjoyed their travelling every year while
working and especially after retirement. They had many
wonderful travels – Africa, England and Scotland, USA, Austria,
Germany, as well as several Caribbean Islands. They were particularly
fond of Barbados where they vacationed for 25 years and had many
wonderful friends. Frank was fond of the local Barbados rum, Mount
Gay, as it was ‘cheaper than water’,
he’d say.
The men’s coffee clubs were an all-time favourite
on Tuesdays in St. Stephen with the ‘boys’ and on
Wednesdays at the Lodge. He might even have contributed to the many
stories and jokes told there.
His love of hot dogs, chocolate and raspberry pie will always
be remembered. Frank was extremely proud of his
grandchildren and loved them dearly, often saying they were so smart
because of him with a chuckle.
Frank took up residence ay Passamaquoddy Lodge in December
2019. He was happy to be with Jeanne and he loved his new
home as well as all the nurses and staff in the building. He would
thank them daily for taking such great care of him and Jeanne and he
always had a joke to tell to the girls. He was so thankful and blessed
to be there with Jeanne.
A special thanks to all the staff at Passamaquoddy Lodge for
their amazing friendship, care and love shown to Frank since December
2019 and please know he loved you all. He also had some great
friendships at Passamaquoddy who he shared some great chats and
laughs. Frank was always grateful for all the extra love and attention
shown to him by staff, especially the treats and chocolate. Also,
special thanks to Nurse Johnson, who went above and beyond for her
sister-in- law’s father-in-law and to Dr. Pinder for the
care shown and the much needed prescription of a little snort of rum
as needed. Thanks to all for making this his home.
Funeral service will be held at the Kirk McColl United
Church, 70 King Street, St Stephen, NB on Saturday, October 30, 2021
at 2 PM. The family will receive friends at the church on Saturday
from 12-2 PM.
Please be
advised, that due to mandatory regulations imposed by the New
Brunswick government, everyone 12 years of age and older, must show
proof of vaccination or medical exemption certificate and government
issued ID to attend the funeral service or visitation. Face masks must
be worn at all times while in the
church.
Interment at Pomeroy Ridge Cemetery, Pomeroy Ridge,
NB.
For those who wish, donations in Frank’s memory may
be made to the Passamaquoddy Lodge, Charlotte County Cancer
Society, or a donation to a charity of your choice.
Frank’s amazing sense of humour, love of life and calmness
will be missed and always remembered by all who knew
him.
Always in our
hearts forever. Cheers to you, Frank (Dad &
Grampie)!
“Keep Maine
green”, Dad!
Our most sincere sympathies to the family and friends of Frank H Richards 1929 2021..
Death notice for the town of: St-Stephen, Province: Nouveau-Brunswick
Bill, our deepest sympathies to you and your entire family. He was a wonderful man!
Monaghan Family
My sympathy to the family on Frank’s passing. It was interesting to note that he passed away on the date of his and Jeanne’s wedding anniversary. Jeanne is my first cousin (her mother Lola and my mother Gert, were sisters) and Frank and Jeanne visited our family at Holland Centre Ontario on their honeymoon.