Frances J. Bixby, Educator (1941-2017)

Frances Josephine Bixby of Mill Lane, Amherst, Massachusetts passed away on September 25, 2017 surrounded by her loving family. Frances was born on February 12, 1941 in Jersey City, NJ to Joseph and Stella (Karpinski) Hussey. She was the third of four children. Frances was raised in Jersey City and Union, New Jersey. She attended St. Aloysius High School in Jersey City. Upon graduation Frances began working at Fidelity Union Trust Company, Newark, NJ where she met her future husband, William C. Bixby. At Fidelity, she worked as an auditor in the accounting department for three years before leaving to get married in 1961 and moving to Madison, NJ. Frances and William had their first child, Mark, in 1962 and their second, Kathleen, in 1963. Kathleen passed in infancy. They also adopted a son, David, who also passed in childhood. While raising Mark, Frances attended and graduated with a BA in education from St. Elizabeth’s College, Convent Station, NJ in 1972. Frances and her family moved to Bedminster, NJ in 1973 where she went on to work in the Bedminster school system and was later the director of a Title XX Program (Head Start) at the Salvation Army, Morristown, NJ. Frances and William moved to Amherst in 2005 to be closer to their grandchildren. Frances was a lover of children and animals, especially dogs, and spent countless hours regaling her grandchildren with stories of her life and her dogs.

Frances was predeceased by her beloved brother, Thomas Hussey, who passed in 2013. Frances is survived by her husband of 56 years, William Bixby of Amherst; her son, Mark W. Bixby and daughter-in-law, Jennifer, of Pelham; their four children, Tucker, Reed, Evan and Kira; her brother, Robert Hussey of Toms River, NJ; and her nephews and nieces, Kevin Hussey, Ricky Hussey, Jason Hussey, Danielle Ortiz, Rose Esther McCauley, Arthur Bixby, Michelle Hussey and Robert Hussey.

Receiving hours will be from 5:00 to 7:00 pm on Friday, September 29th, at the Douglass Funeral Service, Amherst, MA. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:00 am on Saturday, September 30th, at Most Holy Redeemer Church, Hadley, MA.

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made in Frances’s name to the Epilepsy Foundation.

Memorial register at www.douglassfuneral.com