Mrs. Brewster was born on Dec. 18, 1947, in Logan, West Virginia, a small city near the Kentucky border rich in coal and richer in people. Mrs. Brewster told fond stories of the Logan of her youth, an idyllic community punctuated by an iconic truss bridge, a steam railway and the glistening Guyandotte River. There, immigrant families representing countries from all over the world pursued their dreams.
Mrs. Brewster’s family was one such family: As a child, her father Frank Fortunato Zappia left Italy and settled with relatives in Logan. There, he met Mrs. Brewster’s mother Antonia Torlone, a second-generation American whose family also had immigrated from Italy. In Logan, the Zappias grew a shoe cobbler’s business and a family of four—Mrs. Brewster, her eldest sister Carmen and her two younger brothers Frankie and Tommy.
Life in Logan with Frances was sweet, her siblings say. She was a good big sister who welcomed her younger brothers home from school with smiles and laughter. She was known to dance the Jitterbug through the house with her eldest sister Carmen. At night, Mrs. Brewster’s favorite thing to do was to fall asleep with her sister listening to stacks of records by 1960s heartthrob Paul Anka, Mrs. Brewster’s puppy Angel nestled by her side.
But Mrs. Brewster was the true angel, her family says. She embodied kindness, compassion and love. Even her words felt like a hug, said a sister-in-law, who recalls being nervous to meet family members for the first time but felt right at home with Mrs. Brewster.
That love of people was something so special about Mrs. Brewster—part who she was and part where she came from. Mrs. Brewster often witnessed her mother volunteering in the Logan community, taking elderly community members to the hospital for appointments. And, she watched her father, once elected as Logan mayor as a write-in-candidate, open his cash register to the community. Noticing veterans sitting outside without a place to go, Mrs. Brewster’s father invited them to wash up in the family shoe shop and then join him for a meal at the neighboring restaurant.
Mrs. Brewster took all of these things and more into her adult life, where she never forgot where she came from and never forgot how important it was to treat everyone with compassion and respect.
If Mrs. Brewster loved you, you knew you were loved, said one sibling. And perhaps the fiercest love of all was the love she gave to her family.
Mrs. Brewster saw the future love of her life, Joe Brewster, while walking down a sidewalk in Logan. She was with her brother Frankie, a classmate of Joe’s, and she asked for an introduction. “He’s too young for you!” quipped Frankie, letting Joe pass by. Mrs. Brewster, three years older, took matters into her own hands and showed up at the grocery store where Mr. Brewster worked. She asked him where to find the frozen French fries, and from that moment on, a true love story began. Over the next 57 years the Brewsters were blessed with four children, eleven grandchildren, six great grandchildren, and a lifetime of love.
Mr. and Mrs. Brewster married in 1972 and moved to Winston-Salem, N.C. By that time, Mrs. Brewster, ever conscientious and determined, had already completed two years of study at West Virginia University and had worked as a flight attendant for Piedmont Airlines. She spent the next several decades working in insurance, real estate and homemaking, the latter by far her favorite profession (but Mrs. Brewster’s children said she missed her calling as a detective and always kept them on their toes).
Her children were the joys of her life—and she would go to great lengths to give them what they needed. Dedicated time playing board games before bed. A surprise, prized guitar before taking the stage at a concert. Sewing dance costumes for five performances in a row. Mrs. Brewster was her children’s biggest supporters at all swim and gymnastics meets, soccer games and tennis matches, dance recitals and concerts. For all of her children, there was celebration for their great successes; and commiseration when they were disappointed. But love—always love.
That love was steely-eyed. The kind of love that makes you go to the ends of the Earth for the people you love. The kind of love that doesn’t back down. The kind of love that sees right through you. The kind of love that makes you become a better person, her children say.
In the end, Mrs. Brewster embraced the simplicities of life and its joys. At 73, she never forgot to dance—going to weekly Zumba classes. At 76 and battling cancer, she often was spotted on the floor playing with her youngest grandchildren. A woman of immense faith, she prayed the rosary every night for the people on her heart.
And she laughed. She really laughed. A laugh so big and so wonderful that her family says they will remember it forever.
Preceding Mrs. Brewster in death are her husband Joe Brewster and her father Frank Zappia. Surviving are three siblings Carmen Blatt, Frank Zappia and Tom Zappia. She also survived by a daughter, Rebecca Wallace, a son Justin and wife Gini; a son Jon and wife Christina; and a daughter Sara; grandchildren Jacqueline, Jenna, Beau, Payton, Ascher, Waylon, Colten, Isaac, Hank, Martha Rose and Thomas; and six great-grandchildren Landon, Connor, Sophiera, Graycee, Marshall, and Amelia.
A celebration of life will be held in August.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Frances Brewster’s memory to the American Cancer Society.
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