Franklin D. Alexander

Franklin D. Alexander, 83, San Antonio, TX passed away October 28th. He was born on February 6, 1935 in Lynn, Massachusetts to Livingston and Elizabeth Alexander. He was a loving husband, son, father, grandfather, great-grandfather and friend who will be dearly missed.

Franklin enlisted in the US Navy in 1952 during the Korean conflict and attended the Hospital Corpsman school in San Diego. After his tour in the Navy was up, he joined the Air Force for one tour and was stationed in Thule, Greenland. He rejoined the Navy and did two tours of duty in Vietnam as a combat medic with the US Marines. He retired from the US Navy after 24 years of dedicated service. After retirement, he continued working as an X-Ray technician at the Audie Murphy VA hospital, for another 20 years. He attended Southwest Texas State University and graduated in 1982 and received a Bachelor of Arts in Applied Sciences, with a concentration in Management.

One of Franklin’s finest achievements was attending the Kodokan School of Judo in Tokyo, Japan. This is the founding birthplace and still the official headquarters of Judo and Franklin was one of the first non-Japanese to study there. He received a black belt and vied for a spot in the 1964 Summer Olympics.

Franklin always had a love for animals, specifically dogs. He had a Siberian husky named Peaches, a Labrador named Roscoe #1, and finally Roscoe #2, a dachshund. He was an avid Jack Daniels enthusiast and loved his occasional “shot”. Franklin was known for being funny, the life of the party, and a loyal and generous man. He also loved to gamble with slot machines being his favorite activity while in the casino.

He was preceded in death by his spouse of 36 years, Marinell Alexander, his parents Livingston and Elizabeth Alexander. Franklin is survived by his children, Angelina Kay Roether, Lisa Marie Miranda, Steven and Karen Cowan, Karen Kay and Jay Hernandez, Mary Lynn and David Countryman. His grandchildren, Ryan and Allison McPherson, Justin Alexander, Cole Roether, Joshua Roether, Jonathan Miranda, Emily Miranda, Matthew Hernandez, Alexandra Hernandez, Jacob Hernandez, Jackson Cowan, Sarah Dean, and Joshua Trivette. His great grandchildren, Carter Alexander, Cooper James McPherson, Chase Jackson Rowe and Emma and Max Dean.

Services are being held under the direction of Sunset Funeral Home to include burial at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery at a later date.