Frances E. Strickland Beals

Frances E. Beals, 83, left her family early morning, Friday, February 3, 2012 after a short fight against cancer. She was born January 17, 1929 in Comstock, NE.

She worked for 42 years as an employee and supervisor at Yuma Proving Ground. She was beloved by her family, friends, employees, and co-workers. Following retirement she enjoyed caring for her great-grandchildren, from their births and later after school. She was the heart of a large, close, and loving family who will miss her greatly. She was a member of the First United Presbyterian Church since 1956 and served as a Deacon for several years.

She is survived by her sisters, Helen Mapes and Isabel Telford; daughters, Pam Roche, Linda Kimberlin and Joanne Beals Delangel; son, Ed (Sheryl) Beals, as well as eleven grandchildren, eighteen great-grandchildren and many nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Roy E. Beals; sisters, Evelyn Wells and Lucille Strickland; brother, Calvin Strickland.

A Visitation will be held at Johnson Mortuary Tuesday, February 7, 2012 from 4:00 P.M. to 7:00 P.M. A service will take place at Johnson Mortuary Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 10:00 A.M. Her final resting place will be at Desert Lawn Memorial Park.

Published on February 5, 2012

Arrangements under the direction of Johnson Mortuary & Desert Lawn Memorial Park, Yuma, AZ.

Frances E. Beals was a woman for whom actions would speak louder than words. The qualities of being fair, just and the ability to recognize what was right were clearly driving forces in Frances’s life. She was also the kind of person who could respect a “do not disturb” sign, whether it was real or implied. She was analytical and observant, with an ability to be simultaneously spontaneous and keenly perceptive. Frances was modest in her actions and extremely literal in her thoughts and in the manner in which she communicated with others. When Frances said something, she meant it. All those who knew her appreciated this trademark quality.

Her parents were C. O. and Agnes Strickland. Frances was raised in Nebraska. Even as a small child, Frances wanted to understand what was right and what was wrong in any given situation. As Frances grew older, she realized the importance of being treated fairly, and in return, she treated everyone around her the same way. This belief in fair play served Frances well throughout her life and despite her natural shyness; she enjoyed a solid group of friends.

Since Frances sought to treat those around her with respect, she often found herself in the role of playing peacemaker within her family. She was comfortable in working through the types of sibling rivalry situations that quite often occur, because she loved the challenge of conflict resolution. She would look at the most reasonable and practical ways to settle any disputes. Frances was raised with five siblings. She had four sisters, Helen, Isabel, Evelyn and Lucille and one brother, Calvin. Frances was constantly involved in activities with her siblings. Frances and her siblings had the typical rivalries while growing up, but they shared many life experiences.

Those who didn’t know Frannie well might have thought her to be objective and somewhat emotionally detached, but family and friends who were close to her knew that she was capable of unexpected flashes of humor. Frannie’s good friends tended to be “thinkers” like herself. Even though the circle of friends was somewhat small, it was a strong and loyal group, and Frannie liked nothing better than to spend her free time with them. Frances was well known for always being up front and open, never hiding her true feelings, qualities that drew deep loyalty from her friends because they understood and appreciated her for the person she was. Another quality that people admired in Frances was her ability to link cause and effect and apply the appropriate connection in her assessment of any new situation. Later in life, she became friends with Laverne Boskovich.

This same loyalty and up front honesty Frannie shared with her friends carried over to other aspects of her life, including her relationships with her family. On September 16, 1946, Frances exchanged wedding vows with Roy. The marriage became a solid relationship, due in part to Frannie’s skill at bringing fresh energy and clarity to meeting Roy's needs. She was a great listener who enjoyed the couple’s “together” time, especially when it came to celebrating special occasions.

As the family grew, Frances was easily able to adapt to the changes and challenges of parenthood. Frances was blessed with four children, Pam, Linda, Joanne and Edward. They were also blessed with eleven grandchildren and eighteen great-grandchildren, Her grandchildren from Pam are: Lisa (Dennis) Roche Aguerro and Angela Roche; from Ed: Megan Beals and Monica Beals; from Linda: Stephanie (Jim) Cuff Cooke, Dylan Cuff and Loren David Cuff; from Joanne: Kristin Delangel, Kyle Delangel, Matthew Delangel and Eden (Jacob) Delangel. Her great-grandchildren from Lisa: Samantha Aguerro, Randy Aguerro and Matthew Aguerro; from Angela: Ross Baker; from Stephanie: Thomas Cooke, Andrew Cooke, Kathryn Cooke, Julia Cooke and Sarah Cooke; from Dylan: Cassity Cuff; from Kristin: Genevive Delangel, Isabelle Maldonado, Nora Maldonado and Alexandria Jimenez; from Kyle: Giselle Delangel and Aubrey Delangel; and finally from Eden: Angelina Gonsalves and Noah Gonsalves. Frances was never impulsive in dealing with family problems. Instead, she would carefully think things through before implementing the solution in a logical and objective manner. Frances was a strong, clear communicator who excelled at eliminating confusion by making matters crystal clear to all those involved. At the same time, Frances’s inventive nature could turn some of the boring old household chores into a fun activity for the family.

In her work life, Frances was the kind of person who had no difficulty in taking on a project and seeing it through to its completion. She excelled at dealing with those pesky details that can derail some people, and once she understood exactly why she was working on a project, she could plow full steam ahead. For Frances, being able to grasp the logical components of any task was significant to her in appreciating its importance. Even if she worked alone on an assignment, Frances was able to incorporate and welcome new insights from co-workers, and she would readily use them if they improved the process. Her primary occupation was civil service. She was employed for 42 years at the Yuma Proving Ground. Frances always made the effort to be a team player, doing what was necessary in order to get the job done.

Frannie’s curious and inquisitive nature influenced her choice of leisure pursuits as well. She applied her strong concentration and analytical skills as to how things worked to her choice of activities. Her favorite pursuits were knitting, reading and crossword puzzles. Frannie was content to enjoy her hobbies alone but was also willing to share her interests with others.

If Frances believed in a cause or an idea, she was willing to work hard on its behalf. Frances was a member of the PTA when her children were young.

Religion and faith were important to Frances. She held dear the faith and values she derived from her beliefs. She was a member First Presbyterian Church for 56 years. During that time, she was a Deacon.

Frances was a lover of animals and cherished her pets. One of Frances’s favorites was the most current favorite pet was her dog, Dozja. They were best friends for about 6 or 7 years.

As her retirement approached, Frances viewed the event as just one more project to research and solve. So, when the day finally arrived in 1999, she was well prepared. In retirement, she found new pleasure in taking care of her great grandchildren, from their births and later after they came home from school.

Frances passed away on February 3, 2012 at Life Care Center of Yuma in Yuma, Arizona. Frannie fought a short fight against cancer. She is survived by her sisters, Helen Mapes and Isabel Telford; daughters, Pam Roche, Linda Kimberlin and Joanne Beals Delangel; son, Ed (Sheryl) Beals, as well as eleven grandchildren, eighteen great-grandchildren and many nieces and nephews. A Visitation was held at Johnson Mortuary Chapel on Tuesday, February 7, 2012 from 4:00 P. M. to 7:00 P. M. The Funeral Service took place at Johnson Mortuary Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 10:00 A. M. Frannie was laid to rest in Desert Lawn Memorial Park in the Garden of Psalms in Yuma, Arizona.

Frances strongly believed that talk is cheap. She was the type of person who would show others her feelings through her actions. She was practical and realistic but was able to be flexible when the need arose. She had a curiosity about the things around her and tried to experience life directly rather than sit back and talk about it. The experiences she treasured most were those she shared with her loved ones. Frances E. Beals will be greatly missed.