Frances was a member of our Investment Club.  She was a good listener and when she spoke it was like E F Hutton speaking.  Always thoughtful, kind, and full of life, she had a laugh we would recognize anywhere! We disband ten years ago but recently started having lunch together every month.  It was getting more difficult for Frances to get out and join us, so we asked if we could have lunch at her home and we'd bring the food.  You know her answer, yes, of course that would be great!  In November we all squeezed around her dining room table, ate taco salads and had great conversations. Frances asked each of us questions about our family.  It was amazing how much we learned about each other. We asked Frances questions too. She so dearly LOVED ALL HER FAMILY. She spoke of growing up in a family of 10 kids and being a twin. Frances shared how she met her husband and knew immediately "he was the one". My favorite story was about her sister wanting to learn to drive and with so many kids in the family they did not have a car.  She saved up her money and went to the dealership and bought a car and asked them to deliver it to their home. The dealer said she could drive it home to which she replied she did not know how to drive yet!  Grateful for our time together, we'll continue to talk about Frances at our lunches keeping her in our hearts forever.

What to say about Mrs. Frances. I first met her as a client at my beauty school. After doing her hair once I knew she would forever be my favorite client. Each visit was spent chatting, laughing and sharing stories. She was sweet, spunky, and so full of life. After she quit driving that giant Cadillac of hers I would pick her up, drive her to the school, do her hair, go to lunch with her, then drive her home. It was our weekly ritual. Even after I graduated, our friendship continued. She was such a wonderful and kindhearted woman. She will truly be missed.

Our thoughts and prayers are with you all. Your mother has always held a special place in my heart.
God Bless. Dennis and Sandra Skubal

Frances and I were neighbors but more  importantly, girlfriends.  We spent lots of times together discussing  abundant topics.  One topic was books...she was a voracious reader!  I always tried to share my favorites with her.
Of course we talked about all facets of our lives, from our spouses and children, to travels, some of our favorite things and new things I had found to be interesting.  I mentioned that you could look up this or that on Youtube.  She immediately wanted to go back to the computer to have me share with her how to do that.  She thought she was learning something new;  I learned we should never stop learning!  Her joy was always contagious.
One of our last times to have dinner together was a day when snow was predicted, so I walked down to her home with my trench coat in hand.  Just as the snow started, we called the restaurant to order taco salads and Michele,her caregiver  and friend arrived to go pick them up.  Frances and I appreciated that, but her thought was that Michele needed to get on home before the storm worsened, so she sent her on her way.  After our dinner treat, I got up to head home and noticed that big flakes of snow were falling, and she came into the living room to watch beside me as evening fell.  As I hugged her goodbye, she asked me to call her when I got home( a little more that a block away!)  Instead of my concern for her, she was looking out for me!

I was blessed by her friendship and love.  Dearest Frances, thank you!

This is a memory of Mom and Dad at an Air Force vs Norte Dame football game at Falcon Stadium, back in 1982 or '83.  It was a very cold day and I believe one of the few times the  Falcons won against the Irish. The reason this stirs up my memories is that my Mom had a wonderful "adventurer spirit". She loved having new experiences but at the same time was tremendously loyal to her family and the old traditions.  She  was always willing to go where the action was and was fearless. She always stood up to for what was right and spoke out (sometimes loudly) for what she thought was wrong.  But this picture also helps me hope the two of them are reunited as Spirits together in Heaven.
She had the love and understanding of a "Saint" when I needed a shoulder to cry on and would always listen without being judgmental to my problems.  Her advice was always heartfelt and based on a tremendous amount of living through bad and good times. I know I will miss having her wisdom to lean on when things get tough.
She had a unique way of saying something kind, complementary and humorous in any situation that quickly  endeared her to almost everyone she came in contact with. She had a lot of Positive sayings, like "I couldn't be any better", and my favorite: "It's better to be lucky than good looking". She tried to see the bright side in every situation.
She liked to hug and have her neck and back rubbed (and there was a lot of that, as she faded away in her final few days on earth). She liked to sing when she went about the house and that projected her spirit into the world. She was a case where you could take this woman out of Tennessee but you couldn't take the Tennessee out of Frances.
She was one of a kind and will live on in our memory as long as we try to live and handle life with love, as she did. 


I don't know where to start.  Frances was not only a dear friend, but a confidant, wisdom sharer, with an Irish sense of humor and joy that met my own as kindred spirits.  She was strong willed, determined, grace filled and generous in her opinion of others.  She was mighty, mighty proud and happy in her children and her grandchildren. She spoke of her life, right up until the day she died, with such gratitude; that is something I'll always remember, and hope to emulate.  We shared so many fun times; parties and impromptu dinners at her home or mine, lunches out (and always on the alert for that new place to try!), me walking along as she rode her 'motor bike' around the neighborhood, hanging out on late afternoon in her back yard as neighbors and friends stopped by while dog walking.  So many, many time of joy.  She was my rock in times of sorrow, always nudging me toward gratitude as a collie dog nudges the sheep to safety.  Even as I am grateful to the God who held her all the days of her life, and who did not allow her to suffer in her journey home, I am bereft for all of us who have to navigate this new normal, without her laughter and sparkling eyes to look to.  God bless her. 

Grannie, ROCKED! We miss her everyday...I will always remember singing “I’ve got Friends in Low Places”, in the car with her after one I her trips to the ER at 2am. She always faced life with strength, humility and grace. Words cannot describe the loss. 

My Grandmother was always the life of the party, full of wisdom and truth. Here she is handing out with just a few of her grandchildren at one of many Christmas Eve’s.  At 95 she was so full of life I never thought a time without her would come. We love and miss you so much already. 

I enjoyed taking care of Ms Frances this last year.   We enjoyed many conversations and laughed and cried together.   She told me goodbye,  and that she loved and will miss me, that Friday,  and then earned her wings on Sunday.   I will remember her with complete joy,  and will shed tears too.   Till we meet again,  sweet Lady. 

Funeral Mass

Dennis Donnelly

Matilda Donnelly

James (Jim) P. Hensen

Frances Marie (Dana) Hurlbutt

Shana (Mike) Sanderson

Jeremy (Hillary) Hurlbutt

Hudson Hurlbutt

Heidi Hurlbutt

Virginia (Steve Lieberman) Hensen

Emily (Magnus) Karlberg

OBITUARY

Frances V. Hensen

June 10, 1923 – December 9, 2018

Swan-Law Funeral Directors

Show your support

Add a Memory

Share Obituary

Get Updates

Services