Frances Dollar Barnes

Frances Dollar Barnes, almost aged 96, passed away after a long illness on August 6, 2023.She was born on August 11, 1927, in Cresson, Texas, to Roy I. Dollar, Sr., and Mary Elizabeth Browning Dollar. Frances grew up in Mexia, Texas, with her parents and younger brother, Roy, until she graduated from high school and left Mexia in 1945 for what was then known as North Texas State Teacher's College (now the University of North Texas), after which she transferred to the University of Texas at Austin where she was a member of the Delta Gamma sorority and a Bluebonnet Belle nominee. While at the University of Texas, Frances met the love of her life, Robert N. Barnes, who had returned from World War II as a B-24 bomber pilot to attend college at the University of Texas. After marrying in 1948, Frances and Bob eventually settled in Irving, Texas, where they raised their children. Frances was a third-grade teacher at Brandenburg Elementary School in Irving from 1966 to 1988, during which time she received numerous accolades for her teaching excellence and completed her Master of Education degree (with an emphasis on reading instruction) in 1979. After retiring, she spent many years as a volunteer at the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden and enjoying bridge games with her Ladies of the Club bridge group. After her husband's death in 2006, Frances moved to the Mission Trace community in San Antonio, Texas, to be closer to her children. Frances was a skilled gardener, creating many beautiful gardens during her life. Many years of piano and clarinet instruction during her younger years developed into a life-long love of music. Frances had a kind, loving and generous heart, and she will be sorely missed. Frances was preceded in death by her beloved husband, Robert N. Barnes, and her parents, Roy I. Dollar, Sr., and Mary Elizabeth Browning Dollar. She is survived by her son, Michael B. Barnes, and his partner, Kim Yarbrough; her daughter, Molly Barnes, and her husband, Charles B. Leifeste; her brother, Roy I. Dollar, Jr.; her best friend and caregiver, Janice E. Powers; and numerous nieces, nephews, friends, neighbors, and ex-students with whom she still maintained contact until the end of her life.

A burial service will be held at the Dallas-Fort Worth National Cemetery at 10:00 AM on September 14, 2023.

Donations in Frances' memory may be made to the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Center, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, or San Antonio Youth Literacy.