Francis Petrick Louis

Francis Louis was born February 27, 1931, in Detroit, Michigan. She died peacefully after a brief illness on August 14, 2026, at the age of 95. She was one of five children born to Tony and Dolly Petrick. She was preceded in death by her older brother, Jimmy and is survived by her brothers Joe and Anthony, and her sister Gloria. She is also survived by her four children, Jack and his wife Jane, Geary and his wife Martha, Susan and her husband Doug and Sherry and her husband Anthony as well as grandchildren, Matthew, Meredith, Andy, Lindsey, Ashley, Sarah, Joel and Josh, along with 14 great-grandchildren.

Francis was also preceded in death by her beloved husband of 69 years, Jack. Jack and Francis met at a wedding. Francis was singing with her brother Jimmy’s band and Jack was there with a date. When Jack saw this beautiful woman and heard her amazing voice, he knew he had to meet her. He introduced himself and simply said, “You have beautiful green eyes”. After a courtship of about a year, they were married at St. Mary’s Cathedral in Austin on August 14, 1949.

Jack and Francis had a long and loving marriage. They were wonderful parents to their four children and wonderful grandparents and great grandparents.

While Francis was born in Detroit, she moved to Texas when she was three months old. The family settled in Central Texas, sometimes living in the Hill Country and at other times in Austin.

Francis attended public schools through the 10th grade but finished high school at St. Mary’s Academy, an all-girls Catholic school. Her mother, Dolly felt Francis had become “too social” and that St. Mary’s would be a better school for her.

Francis loved her time at St. Mary’s. She became editor of the yearbook and student council vice president. It was at St. Mary’s that she made many lifelong friends. She had some wonderful stories to tell about some very innocent escapades that were great adventures to her.

Not long after graduation, she returned to St. Mary’s to tell the principal, Sister Lucy that she was getting married. To her surprise, Sister Lucy said that she and the other sisters at St. Mary’s thought Francis would join the Order and become a nun. She had a big smile every time she told that story.

Francis and Jack raised their four children in a small home and on a teacher’s salary. Jack, Geary, Susan, and Sherry have many great stories about that time.

Francis worked at the Hancock Recreation Center Tiny Tots program as a preschool teacher for 20 years. She was joined there by her closest friend Elaine. She was known as “Miss Francis” and beloved by the children and their parents.

Francis volunteered at Seton Medical Center for many years in the Sprouts cafe. She enjoyed working there with some of her good friends and served soup and sandwiches to visitors, staff, nurses and doctors.

Francis loved children. She loved all children, not just her own. She loved spending time with her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She loved photos and videos of them. Wherever she was, if there were children around, she would smile. She had a special gift, and children were drawn to her.

Francis was a phenomenal cook. She learned to cook Italian food from her mother and Lebanese food from her Lebanese husband Jack. If you wanted a fantastic meal on Sunday, all you had to do was show up at noon at her house. There was always plenty.

After her husband Jack died in 2018, Francis lived alone for 4 years and then moved to a senior living facility where she was once again known as Miss Francis. She quickly made many friends and was very happy there. Her family visited often and she always insisted they have a meal with her.

Francis was a very caring and loving person. Her family was the most important part of her life and she loved each and every one of them deeply. In her later years, she would often say “I love you.” If you just happened to say “I love you” before she did, she would smile and reply, “I love you more!” While we all enjoyed hearing those words, we didn’t need to hear them. We knew she loved us.

While we will miss her terribly, we are comforted by the knowledge that she loved us unconditionally and she showed us how to love others. It was the greatest gift she could have given us. Thank you Mom. We love you….more!

Pallbearers will be her eight grandchildren; Matthew Louis, Meredith Louis, Andy Louis, Lindsey Louis, Ashley Zarbock, Sarah Metoyer, Joel Fontenot and Josh Fontenot.

Family and friends are cordially invited to a Rosary at 9:30 a.m. followed by a Mass of Thanksgiving at 10:00 a.m. on Monday August 24th at St. Theresa Catholic Church, 4311 Small Dr. Austin, TX 78731. A celebration of life will follow. Graveside service will be private.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Hospice Austin’s Christopher House or St. Theresa Catholic Church.