1916
Frances
2015
Frances Elizabeth Akeley
July 2, 1916 — January 30, 2015
Frances Akeley, 98, longtime Fargo resident and community leader, died peacefully on Friday, January 30, 2015, at Sanford Health in Fargo. She was currently a resident at Edgewood Vista.
Frances was born July 2, 1916 in Minneapolis, MN to Frank and Geneve (Wheeler) Probst and lived most of her long and vital life in Fargo. She attended Fargo schools, graduated from Fargo Central High School and North Dakota Agricultural College (NDSU), where she was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority. She and William G. Akeley (deceased 1978) married in 1939, built a house on the north side, and soon after lived at various military posts during WWII. They returned to Fargo, where they raised their two daughters.
Frances loved the Fargo community and volunteer work. Her mission was to contribute both to community and family and to have fun doing it. She was a founding member and longtime sustaining member of the Junior League of Fargo-Moorhead, a member of PEO, and a champion of the Fargo arts community. She was involved with the Lake Agassiz Arts Council, the Upper Midwest Presentation of the Metropolitan Opera, the Plains Art Museum, and the Fargo-Moorhead Symphony Orchestra. In 2004 she was awarded the YWCA of Fargo’s Owens Award as a Woman of the Year for community service.
In 1986 Frances married William C. Lontz (deceased 2000). They enjoyed extensive travel, summers at Detroit Lakes, Minnesota, and winters in Sun City, Arizona.
Frances had an eye and a flair for style. She was a gourmet cook, entertainer, world traveler, community builder, and lifelong learner. She loved life and cherished her friends and family.
Frances is survived by her daughters, Susan (Akeley) Jacobson of Berkeley, California; and Sarah (Akeley) Spradling of Hutchinson, Kansas; stepdaughter, Susan (Lontz) Hiltz of Portage la Prairie, Manitoba; six grandsons; and five great-grandchildren.
In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to either The Junior League of Fargo Moorhead, 3509 Interstate Blvd. S., Fargo, ND 58103; or Gethsemane Cathedral, 3600 25th St. S., Fargo, ND 58104.
Frances was born July 2, 1916 in Minneapolis, MN to Frank and Geneve (Wheeler) Probst and lived most of her long and vital life in Fargo. She attended Fargo schools, graduated from Fargo Central High School and North Dakota Agricultural College (NDSU), where she was a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority. She and William G. Akeley (deceased 1978) married in 1939, built a house on the north side, and soon after lived at various military posts during WWII. They returned to Fargo, where they raised their two daughters.
Frances loved the Fargo community and volunteer work. Her mission was to contribute both to community and family and to have fun doing it. She was a founding member and longtime sustaining member of the Junior League of Fargo-Moorhead, a member of PEO, and a champion of the Fargo arts community. She was involved with the Lake Agassiz Arts Council, the Upper Midwest Presentation of the Metropolitan Opera, the Plains Art Museum, and the Fargo-Moorhead Symphony Orchestra. In 2004 she was awarded the YWCA of Fargo’s Owens Award as a Woman of the Year for community service.
In 1986 Frances married William C. Lontz (deceased 2000). They enjoyed extensive travel, summers at Detroit Lakes, Minnesota, and winters in Sun City, Arizona.
Frances had an eye and a flair for style. She was a gourmet cook, entertainer, world traveler, community builder, and lifelong learner. She loved life and cherished her friends and family.
Frances is survived by her daughters, Susan (Akeley) Jacobson of Berkeley, California; and Sarah (Akeley) Spradling of Hutchinson, Kansas; stepdaughter, Susan (Lontz) Hiltz of Portage la Prairie, Manitoba; six grandsons; and five great-grandchildren.
In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to either The Junior League of Fargo Moorhead, 3509 Interstate Blvd. S., Fargo, ND 58103; or Gethsemane Cathedral, 3600 25th St. S., Fargo, ND 58104.
To send flowers to the family in memory of Frances Elizabeth Akeley, please visit our flower store.
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Friday, February 6, 2015
Starts at 1:30 pm (Central time)
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