Frances Chrastina

Calling Hours:
Friday, October 27, 2023, 4:00-7:00pm
Loutzenhiser-Jordan Funeral Home and Cremation
Services, Inc., 366-368 S. Main St., Greenville, PA

Memorial Service:
Saturday, October 28, 2023, 11:00am
Loutzenhiser-Jordan Funeral Home and Cremation
Services, Inc., 366-368 S. Main St., Greenville, PA

Frances Anne Chrastina, Frannie, Greenville, passed on into eternal life surrounded by family on Wednesday, October 18, 2023 at 10:57pm EST after a long battle with Corticobasal Degeneration (CBD), similar to Parkinson’s dis-ease. A battle that she ultimately won. Her transition was beautiful, peaceful, glorious and poignant.

She is survived by her husband Frank Chrastina; her children Mimi (Thiel) Caban of Massachusetts, John Thiel and his wife, Lori, of PA and Stephanie (Thiel) Tirdel and her husband, Dave, of PA, Wendy (Chrastina) Ruffo of PA, Keith and Lorrie Chrastina of PA, as well as her very much loved grandchildren: Shelby Thiel of Arizona, John Thiel Jr. of PA, Ryan Thiel of PA, Michael and his wife Emily Caban and Hadassah Caban, all of Massachusetts, Josh and Meredith Tirdel of PA, Luke, Abby and Eli Ruffo of PA and Courtney and Michael Chrastina of PA, great grandsons Bradley and Jackson Chrastina, sister Barbara Sokolowski of Rhode Island and nieces Kimberly (Sokolowski) Effler of Florida, Deanna (Waitkunas) Hunt of New Hampshire and Lea Waitkunas.

She is loved and admired by many dear friends including the Driscolls and her first husband John G. Thiel.

She is also survived by and will be much missed by Rascal the cat and horses Clutch, Doc and Lilly.

Frannie was a horse-loving “biker chick”. She and Frank traveled extensively throughout the country with their biker gang “The Wild Boars AKA Bores!” with whom they had many escapades, some publishable and some not. She loved horses and in one of her profound experiences this summer she said she was going to a beautiful place where all the horses were “tame” and she could ride any one that she wanted. She and Frank made many trips to the cabin with the horses where they enjoyed trail riding through the hills of the Cook’s Forest area.

Frannie, Mom, Grandma was a light, a vibrant beauty, full of love for family and longtime friends. Born in Massachusetts to her loving parents Steve and Alice (both deceased) she grew up with her younger siblings Barbara and Stephen (deceased) as well as many others who lived with her family over the years. Adventurous and creative since she was a little girl, Frannie had a love and talent for dance, particularly tap and the polka, a gift for writing poetry, a fantastic sense of style and a flair for hospitality. She grew up in a home with great music, thanks to her accordion playing father and brother, and incredible food, thanks to her mother, all infused with the rhythms and flavors of her Lithuanian heritage. She helped to raise her younger siblings and support her parents who left for work in the wee hours of the morning. Upon high school graduation, she worked for Raytheon as a switchboard operator. In those years, Frannie learned the skills that she later used to be a kind, present, fun-loving and generous Mom. She attended nearly every special event, performance, competition and practice of her children. When her children were young, she was the kind of Mom who baked cookies and was waiting at home for them after school. She also worked part time to earn extra money at the holidays to buy gifts for her family and she was a great example of a woman going from primarily a stay at home mom to a full time businesswoman. First hostessing at Domenico’s Restaurant in Hermitage PA and then going on to a very successful and long career in Sales with Dean Foods.

Frannie’s creativity, strength and zest for life was evident everywhere in her life. She raised her kids with a “You can do anything you put your mind to” attitude plus strong encouragement to think for oneself, not follow the crowd and to be assertive, a strong admonition to always write handwritten “Thank You” notes and the benefits of being blessed by her “Rockstar” cherry pies on birthdays and other special occasions. Her flair for fashion, her personal style and beauty were in everything, from the way she designed and decorated her home to the ideas for her many award winning vendor spaces as she represented Dean Foods in events throughout the region.

Frannie was a lover of life and a lover of people. She kept her sass and sense of humor. She expressed her heart with many “I love you”s and kisses even when it was difficult.

Her family is very grateful to Deanna Wilkerson, Rebaka Lengacher and the Lengacher family for their support.

Frannie’s heart’s desire was for us all to live happy lives and know that we were loved. That is our wish for everyone reading this.

Donations can be made in memory of Frances Chrastina to Cleveland Clinic’s research for Corticobasal Degeneration (CBD).   Memorial gifts may be made to Cleveland Clinic, Philanthropy Institute, PO Box 931517, Cleveland, OH 44193 or online with Cleveland Clinic Giving .