Frances Rita St. John

Frances Rita St. John was born on August 18, 1926 in New York City. She had a great zest for life and a strong faith in God and her family. She died on the early morning of Saturday, April 29, 2017, with her family by her side. Frances studied at Cathedral High School in New York City, where she especially loved studying French. She worked for Asiatic Petroleum in NYC, where she excelled in administrative work. In 1956, she traveled with a group of girl friends to enjoy a Singles Weekend at Eastover Resort in Lenox, MA. There, she met the love of her life, Robert St. John.
They were both smitten with one another from the start. On February 8, 1956, Frances and Bob were walking down 5th Avenue in NYC, running late for a party. Bob told Frances that they needed to stop into St. Patrick's Cathedral for just a minute. Frances said, "OK" and it was there, that Bob popped the question, "Will you be mine forever?" Frances replied, "Yes, I love you." And they started making their wedding plans. On October 26, 1957, Frances married Bob St. John at St. Sebastian's Church at Woodside, Long Island, NY. Afterwards, they danced the night away at their reception. They kept loving one another and dancing for the next 60 years!
As Newlyweds, they lived in the Bronx, where they were also ardent Yankee fans.
In 1964, Frances, Bob and their young family moved to Congers, NY, where Frances was involved in the local PTA and St. Paul's Catholic Church. She had a great spirit of generosity, service and love towards all she met. She adeptly juggled so many roles and she also worked at Macy's and the Rockland County Health Center.
Frances and Bob renewed their wedding vows on their 50th (Golden) wedding anniversary. It was a wonderful celebration at St. Ann's Church in Lenox, MA. With a celebration at Eastover Resort, where they met 51 years earlier. Their children and grandchildren were all with them and cheered them on. In retirement, Frances and her Bob moved to Harwich, MA., where they enjoyed beautiful Cape Cod and all it has to offer. Frances especially enjoyed the beach and nature. She was active in Holy Trinity Church in Harwich, MA. A final move for Frances and Bob was to Southbury, Connecticut, where they enjoy the beautiful green countryside. They are active members in Sacred Heart Church in Southbury, CT. There was always a steady stream of visitors to their home. In addition to loving all things Irish, she loved Guatemala. Frances took a life changing trip with her family to visit the Seeds of Love Children's Village ("Semillas de Amor") in Parramos, Guatemala. There, the family welcomed home her wonderful grand-daughter Isabel. For fun, Frances was a lover of the game shows Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy, where she would regularly know every answer that was asked of the contestants. She would yell the answers at the contestants through the tv, but alas, they could not hear her! :-)


Frances had many wonderful roles in her life - as a daughter, sister, wife, mother, grandmother, aunt and beloved friend.

Frances is survived by her husband Robert "Bob" St. John; her daughter Bernadette St. John;
her son Edward St. John & his wife Luzeni (Souza) St. John & son Eddie;
her son Robert St. John & his wife Mary (Piccinich) St. John & their daughters Melissa, Jackie and Caroline; her daughter Ursula St. John Allen & her husband John Allen and their son Gerard and daughter Isabel; her son Emmett St. John & his wife Padra (Smith) St. John. Frances is the beloved daughter of Owen & Margaret Nesdall, who were both from Ireland. Frances was very proud of her Irish heritage and loved all things Irish! Frances is the beloved sister of Andrew Nesdall and his wife Sally, Margaret (Nesdall) O'Connor and her husband Joseph,
Anna (Nedall) Herche and her husband Charles, Winifred (Nesdall) Keller and her husband Bob and Catherine (Nesdall) Murphy and her husband Jack. She was also the beloved aunt to many: Clare Nesdall, Peggy (Herche) Coughlin, Charles Herche, Caroline (Keller) Pruden, Winnie (Keller) Madden, Robert Keller, Jim O'Connor, Joseph O'Connor, Gerard O'Connor and Margaret (O'Connor) Stratford, Christine (Murphy) Bird, John Murphy, Cathy (Murphy) Henry, Frank Murphy, Dermott Murphy and Mary (Murphy) Waldheim. Frances was a friend to hundreds of people and she had a wonderful gift for staying in touch with her friends through the years and from all locations including her childhood friend Angela Murphy, Mary Lynch and Patsy Travis.

We all miss Frances and are confident that she has earned her rest in heaven.

A celebration of Frances' life will be held as follows:

Tuesday, May 2, 2017 - Wake (viewing hours) from 2-4 pm and 6-9 p.m. at
Spear-Miller Funeral Home, 39 South Benson Road, Fairfield, CT 06824.

Wednesday, May 3, 2017 - 10:00am Funeral Mass at Assumption Catholic Church,
98 Riverside Avenue, Westport, CT 06880.

Cemetery: Sleepy Hollow Cemetery - 540 North Broadway, Sleepy Hollow, NY.
10591.

In lieu of flowers -
Frances' family requests that in lieu of flowers, that donations be sent to the
Seeds of Love Children's Village ("Semillas de Amor"), which is based in Parramos, Guatemala. For donations, contact: Seeds of Love, 2461 Mosswood Lane, Santa Clara, CA 95051.
http://www.semillasdeamor.org/donate-today.html

May she rest in peace and may Our Lord's perpetual light shine upon her.