Frances Elizabeth Duffy Vickery

Frances and her late husband, Raymond, were faithful members of Saint Paul Catholic Church, New Bern. A Mass of Christian Burial is planned for Monday, April 11, 2022 at 2:00 p.m. with a reception for family and friends in the church atrium immediately following. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Saint Paul Catholic Church or to the CarolinaEast Foundation.

Frances was born in Edinburgh, Scotland on March 10th, 1938. She was the oldest child of the late Frances McKenna Duffy and John James Duffy. She is survived by her sister, Patricia Kinghorn and her brother, James Duffy. Her early years were shadowed by World War II, but as peace was restored, she was able to attend Saint Thomas Aquinas School for Girls. Frances met her husband when he was stationed with the United States Air Force at a Royal Air Force Base in the north of England. They married and later moved to the United States. The first stop enroute to Roswell Air Force Base in New Mexico, was a visit to meet Raymond's family in rural Alabama. The family still smiles over the stories told about the Scottish city girl's impressions of life in the country.

After four years in Roswell, they moved to Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in Goldsboro, NC. This was at the height of the Vietnam War and a time of numerous deployments to southeast Asia for Raymond which required Frances to acclimate to single parenthood quickly. In 1968 Frances was able to join Raymond on an accompanied tour to Royal Air Force Base Alconbury, England, where she took great pleasure in seeing their children grow close to her family in Scotland. Upon return from England Frances began a professional career in customer service with Hevi-Duty Electric in Goldsboro.

Frances retired from Hevi-Duty in 1987 and she and Raymond moved to New Bern, where they fell in love with the people and the community. At this time Frances launched a second career as a real estate agent. She loved the endless opportunities to meet new friends until finally retiring in 2002. In retirement, Frances returned with a vengeance to an early love of art and began studying watercolors. While she never considered this a commercial endeavor, her paintings continue to grace the walls of many family members and friends.

Frances was known for her great sense of humor and for her gift of friendship. She collected friends from every period of her life in Scotland, England, New Mexico, and North Carolina and never let them go. For her children she was the anchor that kept them grounded, the kite with which they rode the wind, the mischief maker, the peacekeeper, and the magnet that kept them close. Above all they lived every day confident of her unconditional love.

Frances is survived by her daughter Rosanne Vickery Leahy and her husband Joseph; her son John Franklin Vickery and his wife Ginny. She is also blessed with 6 grandchildren: Kelly Leahy Flanagan (Thomas), Sean Leahy (Kate), and Joseph Leahy (Rebecca); Jacob Vickery (Jasmine), Chelsea (Kyle), and Casey Vickery; and eight great grandchildren: Patrick, Ashling, and Cian Flanagan; Margaret Leahy; Francis, Virginia, and Henry Leahy; and Grayson Vickery.

Cotten Funeral Home is honored to serve the family and friends of Frances Elizabeth Vickery.