Frances Campbell

Funeral service for Fran Campbell, 90, of Montgomery (formerly of Garrison) will be held at 11:00am on Saturday, October 28,2023 at Laird Funeral Home with Bro. Matt Peterson officiating.  Visitation will be held beginning at 10:00am prior to the service on Saturday at Laird Funeral Home.

Mrs. Campbell passed away on Friday, October 20,2023 in Montgomery, Texas.  

Frances, known as Fran, also known to us as Nana, was born to Susie Inez Williams-Ingram & Albert Dural Ingram on November 25, 1932. She was born at their home in the Vim Community outside Garrison, TX. Vim was a thriving sawmill community until the timber was stripped and the sawmill was dismantled and moved to LaNana Bayou along the tracks of the New Texas & New Orleans.

She was the 2nd of 5 children, O’Neal, Frances, Jane, Glen & Shirley. Mom learned how to cook, clean, sew and take care of her siblings at a very young age. And she preferred that over the other farm duties. Milking a cow was not her forte’ and after scaring the milk cow half to death by screaming when the cow turned to look at her, her dad never asked her to milk another cow. Shirley was the baby of the family, 11 years younger and Mom always bragged about being her 2nd mama.

The growing family moved to Garrison into a small farmhouse next to the railroad tracks. They farmed cotton, raised chickens, a garden, dairy cows and cattle to feed the family and those less fortunate who stopped by their house on their way through town. When the children were young, their dad, known to us as Pampa, delivered groceries for his parents’ grocery store. The children and especially Mom enjoyed trips to Mama Georgie and Daddy Jer’s store to get penny candy. Mom could eat a whole bag by herself, and she never overcame that addiction to sugar.

All the children were raised to work at home, on the farm and in the cotton fields, picking cotton. They earned money for their school clothes and shoes. This is the type of background that made Mom into a hard-working student, businesswoman, employer, wife, and homemaker.

Her first job away from home was for the town banker. She worked in his office and prepared his books, balancing to the penny. She graduated at the top of her class from Garrison High School and went to Nacogdoches Business School.

She fell in love with our Dad, Floyd, also known to us as Pa, the first time she saw him in high school. He was her best friend Clara’s big brother. Once she graduated from high school, she and Clara lived together while attending Business School. Then in May of 1951, she and Floyd married. They built a Christian home for their 3 children, Pat, Sherri & Stan. Both parents worked outside the home, were active in church, and were always there when the doors opened.

We learned how to work, clean, and cook. Every holiday, we prepared by decorating our home and cooking together. We sang, played games, and rode bikes, refinished furniture, and remodeled homes. And we learned how to give, and how to love and serve the Lord. Our favorite times were spent in the kitchen together or on the road going to see our Grandparents and Extended Family where we had sing a-longs and listened to tall tales. I remember our family being involved with the Boles Home Orphanage and we tried to get Mom and Dad to adopt one of the girls that were graduating from the home. Simple family times grounded by Christian parents and a Mom that was a fervent Prayer Warrior.

I miss her sense of humor, dry as it was, her laugh, her hugs and words of encouragement and her unconditional love. She expected a lot from us but no less than she expected from herself. She was a perfectionist! She was a seamstress, making all our clothes when we were young, an artist, interior designer, landscaper, chef, wife, Mother, Grandmother, Great-Grandmother and Great-Great Grandmother, businesswoman, employer, and contractor. All these things but she would tell you her most important job of all was her role as a Christian Prayer Warrior and from that she never retired. She truly was the Proverbs 31 woman.

Frances is survived by her children, Sherri Cope & husband, Cam of Montgomery and Stan Campbell of San Antonio; son-in-law, Norman Bonnette of Splendora; grandchildren, Tricia Bledsoe, Tayra Peterson & husband, Matt, Nathan Bonnette & wife, Emily, William (Trey) Brant, Kathryn Feagins & husband, Sam, Audrey Schmidt & husband, Tyson, Amanda Campbell, Ashley Moss & husband, Sid, Anna Campbell, James Campbell, Christie Busenlehner & husband, Brian and Donnelle Zeamer & husband, Aaron; great grandchildren, Carson Bledsoe, Hanna Bledsoe, Abby Peterson, Christian Peterson, Joanna Peterson, Naom Bonnette, Waylon Bonnette, Gavin Bragg, Ethan Feagins, Levi Feagins, Ryann Zapotek, Del Zapotek, Reagan Schmidt, Everett Campbell, Clara Moss, Jodi Moss, Katrina Bledsoe, Brady Busenlehner, Carter Busenlehner, Caden Zeamer, Leah Zeamer; great-great granddaughter, Aria Grace Bragg; sisters, Jane Lunsford of Garrison and Shirley Wright & husband, John David of Beckville; as well as numerous nieces and nephews.

She is preceded in death by her husband, Floyd N. Campbell; daughter, Patricia Bonnette; parents, Susie & Albert Ingram; grandson-in-law, Anthony Bledsoe; brothers, O’Neal Ingram & spouse, Jeri Ingram, and Glen Ingram & spouse, Orine Ingram; brother-in-law, James Hoy Lunsford; and her mother-in-law and father-in-law, Minnie Lee & John Henry Campbell.

Serving as pallbearers will be Trey Brant, Nathan Bonnette, Gavin Bragg, Ethan Feagins, Levi Feagins, Everett Campbell, Brady Busenlehner, Caden Zeamer and Carter Busenlehner.

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