Like skeetshooting:

Knock ‘em down one at a time, Frank!

Frank Franze, Class of 1950, who lives in Slidell, Louisiana, is taking his ailments on one at a time.

Writes Frank:

“I broke the skin on my shin while fishing on a dock. The accident occurred last August and it became infected and would not heal. I am released this week. Will be talking about knee replacement soon.”

Frank also has dealt with prostate surgery.

Frank had planned to be at the 2015 Monongah High Alumni Reunion when the Class of 1950 was a special honor class (and 6 octogenarians showed up!), but his string of medical problems interfered.

Writes Frank:

“I was determined to be there this year. If you are ever down this way you are welcome. Our restaurants on the north shore rival the best in New Orleans.”

Paula and I ate and heard music in New Orleans, after going to the WVU-LSU game in 2010. I’m salivating just thinking about the Cajun food there.

 

Frank moved from Jasper, Texas to Slidell in November after the July 2013 death of his second wife, Linda Corkern Franze, because “my daughters wanted me to move near them.”

20-year Air Force veteran Frank and his first wife, a Louisiana girl, had three daughters before she died in 1981 – Barbara Franze Bell, married to Steve Bell, whose children are Amanda, Stevie and Erin; and Amanda Franze Calhoun, married to Pate Calhoun, whose children are Marley and Cooper; and Carol Franze Presbindowski and Brent Presbindowski, whose children are Jacob and Rebecca. Carol and Brent, both victims of Hurricane Katrina, met and married after that horrible encounter with Mother Nature.

Stevie is the granddaughter who kept Frank from making the Class of 1950’s 50^th anniversary reunion in Fairmont in 2000 because that conflicted with her high school graduation. She is in advertising sales for the Gulfport (Mississippi) Sun Herald.

Kathryn Ann Manuel Marshall, Class of 1960, who lives in Columbia, Maryland, is Frank’s cousin. Her aunts are Ann Manuel Richardson of Colorado and Virginia Manuel Eddy, both  Class of 1950. Both have passed away.

Frank lives in Louisiana Meadowdale Apartment Homes, which has a 24-hour fitness center, swimming pool, club room with wifi accessibility, laundry facility, on-site management and 24-hour emergency maintainence. 

Frank is minutes from Interstates 12 and 10.

His address is:

Frank Franze

1 Meadows Boulevard

Apartment #112

Slidell, LA  70460a

His new phone number is (409) 381-9751. His email address is frankfranze@sbcglobal.net

Frank and Donald “Jake” Halpenny were the chaffeurs for the whimsically named Gang That Terrorized Marion County (because we weren’t mean enough to do that). Frank would drive one of his dad’s vehicles from their Everson home and pick up Gang members along the way. My house on Church Street in Monongah was the last stop. I could barely get into the back of the pickup there were so many in it.

You just can’t have a childhood like that any more. Which is a shame.