Frankie Nadine Windsor

Mrs. Windsor was born on January 25, 1927 in Millville, Texas to Joseph Franklin and Laura Emma Dunn Grindle. At a young age the family moved to a farm in Crims Chapel, Texas, where she graduated from Crims Chapel High School. She would go onto take a job with her older sister as a carhop at Gilstrap Restaurant, in Longview, TX, where she would meet the love of her life Lester M. “Duke” Windsor Sr., the couple married on March 7, 1944, shortly after she moved to Houston, TX, to work as a telephone switchboard operator. In 1946 she rejoined her husband in Arlington, VA and moved back to east Texas to start a family. They would have 7 children over a 20 year period Ms. Windsor loved to dance to old country music, play cards, dominoes and later in life she took girls trips with her sisters. She made the best hushpuppies, even if Lester said “she can’t do it without setting the smoke detector off.” She was a singer some of her favorites was “I saw mommy kissing Santa Claus”, “Hey Good Looking”, and “Tula Rula” which she would laughingly say “Wesley always said “mommy no more Tula Rula” but it was her trademark for all the babies.

There were a lot of babies to be held and sung to over her lifetime. Later in life she shared stories of Saturday night barn dances with her siblings, her daddies brand new model T having the tires stolen off them, of course being five years old and having walk 3 miles to school both ways uphill, and going to Washington D.C., with Lester and seeing the cherry blossoms in bloom. She adopted her two little dogs Peanut and Heidi after all her children had left and mothered them until their passing.

Ms. Windsor was preceded in death by her parents: beloved husband of 45 years, daughters Donna Kiper and Jennifer Powell, son William “Butch” Windsor, son-in-laws Gordon Powell and Robert Grissom. Her brothers Rayford, Travis, Fred “Pickle”, Darrell Gene “Peter” Grindle, sisters Vera Grindle, Alice “Tootie” Gibson, Emma Jewel “Jude” Harris and Otheila Green.

She leaves behind her daughters Sandra Grissom of Ft. Worth, TX, and Stacy (Steven) Bragg of Gilmer TX, sons Lester “Bubba” (Wanda) of Longview, and Wesley (Beth) of Hallsville, TX son-in-law Clay Kiper of Longview and daughter-in-law Debbie Windsor Stverak of Breckenridge, TX.; grandchildren, Laura Evans, Dawn DeLaurelle, Josh Kiper, Sherri Thomas, Alex Grissom, Kara Butler, Marcie Voglino, Angie Almanza, Valerie Windsor, Chris Windsor, TJ Windsor, Marcus Windsor, Justin Windsor, Brandi Windsor, Haylee Wallace and Bryce Gordon; along with 27 +1 great grandkids and 11 great-great grandkids. And a host of extended family.

The family will receive friends at 1:00 pm Tuesday, June 21, 2022 at Lakeview Funeral Home 5000 W. Harrison Rd., Longview, TX 75604 with services to follow at 2:00 pm.