Born in San Bernardino, CA
July 8, 1965 - November 18,2020
Daughter to Richard Fernandez Franco and Lois “Joanne” Franco
Francine was born in San Bernardino, CA but grew up in Colton, CA. She attended Lincoln Elementary, Colton Middle School and graduated from Colton High School in 1983. After high school, Francine’s first job was at Inland Eye Institute where she was the Office Manager for ten years in Colton, CA.
Francine met her future husband, Louis Toro, at New Life Fellowship Church. They fell madly in love and wed on April 25, 1987 at New Life Fellowship Church in San Bernardino, CA. Soon after, on May 15, 1993 they welcomed their first-born child and named her Amanda. They were both so in love with their daughter. Then, on September 14, 1994 they welcomed their second child, Nathan. Their little family was complete. When Nathan was a couple years old, they found out that he had autism. If anyone knew Francine, they knew how much her family meant to her. Her family was always her top priority. From the moment Francine found out about Nathan’s diagnosis, she made it her life’s goal to learn everything that she could about autism. That meant that she would attend conferences out of state, joined working groups and researched everything that she could get her hands on because she wanted to make sure Nathan was getting the best care around. It is because of this tireless dedication to her son, that Nathan graduated from high school and is currently working. He has also traveled out of the country to visit places he had read about. Francine dedicated her time to travel with him and made sure he was able to enjoy those experiences. Nathan has recently told everyone that he “is the man he is today because of his mom.” One would think that as much time and effort she poured into her son would leave someone exhausted or out of steam for anyone else, but that is where Francine was different. As involved as she was with her son, she was just as dedicated to her daughter Amanda from a very young age. Francine loved seeing her daughter Amanda cheer throughout high school and college. She was extremely proud of her and recently shared her pride about Amanda returning to school for a second degree in nursing. Francine was utterly and completely dedicated to her husband, children and her mother.
After Francine’s father, Richard Franco, passed in 2006, her mother Joanne had a series of medical episodes including multiple strokes. Without question, Francine took in her mother in 2007 to care for her. Just like she dedicated her time to her children, she did the same with her mother. She often went without vacations or time to herself because her mother could not be left alone. This was exactly who Francine was. She exemplified the word selfless. Anyone who came in contact with her, knew how much her family meant to her, even if she had to sacrifice.
Francine loved going on day trips with her friends and children. She was a season pass holder for many years at Disneyland and loved eating at different spots and trying different beers. She would often take a train ride or look up a spot that Nathan found on the internet to go try.
Francine also had strong beliefs in her faith as a devout Christian woman. She was a very passionate republican and very patriotic. She loved her country.
Francine and Louis spent 33 blissful years of marriage together. When her cancer prognosis became dire, her mother-in-law Carmen immediately came to California to help care for her. At that same time, knowing she was no longer able to care for her mother, she called her sister Mary Torres and moved her mother in with her. Francine knew she would be in good hands and knew that was the best decision for her mother.
We will all remember her beautiful spirit, infectious laugh, kind heart, her strength, humility and love for her entire family.
Francine was preceded in death by her father, Richard Fernandez Franco. She leaves behind her husband, Louie Toro, daughter and son Amanda and Nathen Toro, both from San Bernardino; her mother, Joanne Hendrikson Franco (Yucaipa); mother-in-law, Carmen Quinones-Nieves, father-in-law Rafael Nieves-Guzman (both of Florida); her siblings, Gail Franco Lopez (Redlands, CA), Richard Lee Franco (Bullhead, AZ), Jeffrey Richard Franco (Corona, CA), Mary Franco Torres (Yucaipa, CA), Joanne “Yvette” Franco (Redlands, CA), and Glen “Rocky” Franco (Yucaipa, CA). Francine also leaves behind a host of nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles, cousins and friends.
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