Jane Kathryn Franco

Jane Kathryn Franco (neé Kniaz) passed away peacefully on the sunny, calm, morning of Saturday June 13, 2026, following her own heroic battle with cancer. She was surrounded by love and by her youngest son, and primary caregiver, Michael. She was 49-years-old and naturally blond her entire life. Her ENTIRE LIFE.

Born in Detroit, and raised on the notoriously tough streets of St. Clair Shores, she was the eldest daughter of Phil and Veronica Kniaz. Her early childhood was steeped in dance classes, piano lessons and the visual arts in the desperate hope of being discovered by Lawrence Welk. While Lawrence may have failed to find her, the halls of a Hamtramck dance studio saw her talent.

Jane attended St. Isaac Jogues Elementary school where she learned to do basic math on her Archdiocesan-issued abacus. From there, she went on to attend her freshman year at Dominican High School but left due to the wearing of an illegal pattern of plaid. At 16, her father got her into the lucrative and mafia-controlled, grocery business as a union cashier at Farmer Jack’s where she was frequently named employee of the month and winning cashier of the year. Jane graduated from Lakeview High School in 1971 and began additional studies at Macomb Community College.

She left college when she was 21 and was married, but those details are not important except that through her marriage, she had her sons Joseph and Michael. And for her, this was all the nuclear family she needed. Jane was certified in massage therapy after attending a massage school in Santa Rosa, California. She became enamored with massage and a healthy lifestyle after discovering Enya’s album Watermark. Her children still lovingly reflect on the many dinners of brown rice and baked chicken and salmon she served. Stir fry was a way of life for her. But massage would not content her and she wanted more. Jane returned to college where she eventually completed her bachelor’s degree in business administration and continued working as a scan coordinator for Kroger for over 45 years.

In addition to her children and her family, Jane’s greatest loves were music, reading, art, and gardening as she earned herself the title of master gardener through a program administered by Michigan State University. She spent her springs, summers and autumns in her garden where she enjoyed pissing off her neighbors as she insisted on the use of native plants that “just looked like weeds” to attract native and threatened species of butterflies, and birds among a myriad of other native Michigan wildlife. Her garden and her determination to garden in spite of her cancer, became her most lasting legacies. Jane also became a certified instructor in the art therapy known as Zen Tangle. Those who knew her were the lucky recipients of many a hand-drawn and painted bookmark, or Christmas ornament. Jane was a frequenter of The Detroit Institute of Arts, and the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. She spent her free time expanding her knowledge and remaining curious about her world. She took classes at the Selinski-Green Farmhouse in the art of pysanki (which is Ukrainian for laboriously decorated eggs), and at the Polish Art Center in Hamtramck in the braiding of palms on Palm Sunday, where she not only learned to make palms into crosses and crowns of thorns but also where she learned how to build a rudimentary shelter out of the blessed palms. Jane also loved to read and even as her eyesight failed, did her level best to continue reading.

She loved music as she played piano, organ, and acoustic tambourine being trained in the style of Stevie Nicks. Jane was a lifelong fan of the Beatles. Jane was also a big fan, perhaps the biggest of fan of Barry Manilow. She was known to sing her eldest son to sleep singing his hit song “Mandy” to him. She also loved Paul McCartney, Michael Buble, Josh Groban, Celine Dion, Whitney Houston, Phil Collins, Madonna, Lady Gaga, Cher and Adele. Many of whom she was fortunate enough to have seen in concert.

Despite purposely living in Michigan her entire life, Jane was not a particular fan of the climate and longed for warmer places. When she was young, she often traveled to Florida to spend time with her cousins to defy both UV rays and the ozone layer while using baby oil to tan with on Haulover Beach in Miami. She also went on a number of cruises to the Caribbean and, before the cartels invaded, she also spent time in Acapulco, Mexico. Jane adopted the flamingo as her own personal spirit animal and many representations of them could be found in her home and around her garden.

Jane was a staunch believer in her Polish traditions, which is why she served sauerkraut at every major religious and federal holiday. This Flag Day will not be the same without her kielbasa and cabbage salute to the American West. But she passed on her love of her family’s Polish heritage to her sons including the serving of pierogi…not the making…as that is just too hard. Jane often hosted Wigilia, the Polish celebration of Christmas Eve. There isn’t a similar word for the Polish celebration of Easter but she did manage to make sure there was a butter lamb on the table. What a butter lamb is for, remains a mystery, as is the miracle of Easter.

Jane walked almost every morning in her neighborhood and at the Lakeview High School track. Keeping active and healthy were important to her. Even when faced with the dire diagnoses of two different kinds of cancer, Jane insisted on living as healthily as possible. Although she sometimes made exceptions for ice cream, brownies, cookies, potato chips, tortilla chips, salsa, and the occasional Pinot Grigio.

She is survived and remembered by her sons Joe (or Joey when she wanted him to sound younger so she would also sound younger) (Chris Butler), and his brother and Jane’s baby, her son, Michael. She is also survived by her sisters Betty (Dale) Barwig, Mary Ann (Richard) Ricchi, and her incredibly close first cousins, Henry (Debbie) Dymek and Michael (Margaret) Dymek. She is the Aunt to Sarah (Ethan) Van Vilburg, Brian (Katy) Ricchi, Eric (Megan) Ricchi, Patrick (Megan) Ricchi, Andrew Dymek, and her goddaughter and niece, Katie Dymek. Jane is the great aunt to Levi Van Tilburg, Madison and Lucas Ricchi, and Josiah, Isaiah, and Selah Ricchi.

Jane was preceded in death by both of her parents, her aunt and godmother, Irene (Ikey) Dymek, as well as many other aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends. Jane was also preceded in death by her beloved friend, companion, and shadow, the Diva Dame Edna (Eddie), her trusted living white fluff ball of a bichon frise who is no doubt with her again. She is the grandmother of Franklin Dogano Roofsevelt Butler-Franco, the gremlin/mini-schnauzer mix and step-grandmother to the late Reilly Butler, the gentlemanly wheaten terrier, who her son-in-law Chris still insists is the better dog.

She will be desperately missed.

Visitation will be held on Monday, June 29, 2026, at Kaul Funeral Home in St. Clair Shores from 3:00 PM until 8:00 PM with a rosary to be said for the repose of her soul at 7:00 PM.

She will lie in state at Ss. Peter and Paul Jesuit Church on Jefferson in Downtown Detroit on Tuesday, June 30, 2026, from 10:00 AM until 11:00 AM immediately followed by a mass and a procession to and internment at Resurrection Cemetery in Clinton Township.

Family and friends will be welcomed immediately afterwards at Fern Hill Country Club for a late lunch with refreshments. Guests to both the visitation and funeral mass and luncheon are encouraged to wear an item of pink clothing in her honor.

Flowers are always welcomed as Jane was an avid gardener, but those who would prefer a donation may do so directly to the family, who wish to sponsor a park bench in her favorite lakeside park in her hometown of St. Clair Shores.