Frances Dudley O'Brien

Frances Dudley O’Brien, 73, of Atlanta, GA, passed away on December 31, 2024. She was born on October 29, 1951, in Rocky Mount, NC, and was the youngest daughter of the late Samuel Carlton Dudley and Dorothy Crocker Dudley.

After graduating from Rocky Mount Senior High School, Frances attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. A Morehead Scholar, she earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in 1974 and her MBA in 1978. Frances began her career at R.J. Reynolds before moving to Atlanta, where she worked for Coca-Cola for 11 years. Passionate about corporate philanthropy, she spent the last three years of her tenure at Coca-Cola as a founding officer of the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation.

Frances remained dedicated to volunteerism and philanthropy throughout her life, contributing her time and efforts to organizations such as Northside United Methodist Church, the Shepherd Center, the Sandy Springs Library, and for 18 years, Good Mews, a no-kill cat shelter.

Frances is survived by her husband of 38 years, John; her son, Tucker, and his fiancée, Lukia Kliossis; her sisters, Cecilia Wachtel and Lynell Fleming; her brother-in-law, George Leal (Ann); her nieces, Katie Trahan, Sara Locklear (Stevie), Jennifer Gowen (Tom); her nephews, Nick Wachtel and David Leal (Kristen); as well as cousins and extended family.

The funeral service will be held at 2:00 PM on Sunday, January 12, 2025, at Northside United Methodist Church, 2799 Northside Drive NW, Atlanta, GA 30305. In lieu of flowers, donations in memory of Frances may be made to the My Sonshine Foundation (mysonshinefoundation.org) or the Good Mews Animal Foundation (goodmews.org).