Francis James DeGross

Francis J. DeGross, 85, from south Minneapolis passed away early Friday morning, December 2nd. Fran was preceded in death by his wife of 54 years, Jen, his parents, Anton and Elizabeth, as well as brothers, Ambrose (Lorna), and Vincent. Fran is survived by 6 children, Mick (Jane), Tim (Cindy), Pat, Kathy (Jay) More, Tony (Jean), Jenny (Patrick) Stephan. He is also survived by grandchildren Derek, Elizabeth, Zach, Josh, Theresa, Lydia, Jacob, Ian, and Jacqueline. Francis grew up in the New Market area on a farm about half-way between New Market and Elko. Francis was the youngest of three boys, although he never saw or met his middle brother Vince, who died when Francis was a year old. Ambrose was much older than Francis, but always stayed in communication over the years before he passed away in 2009. When Fran was younger, lore has it that when Anton and Liz were doing their chores just before Christmas, Fran would sneak back in the house, play with his Christmas toys, rewrap them, and set them back under the tree. We heard this story for years and he never denied it. He also enjoyed his cars. His most prized possession was his '57 four door Chevy that he still missed all these years later. Fran also served with the Army reserves based in New Prague. He met the love of his life, Jen, at the Prom ballroom in St. Paul and they married on February 7th, 1959. They soon celebrated the birth of Michael followed by Timothy and then Patrick. Eventually a girl was born five years later, Kathleen, followed by Anthony and finally Jennifer. Fran was very involved with the St. Stephen's parish where they lived in a four plex apartment right across the street from the church. He was involved with working Bingo at St. Stephen's every Friday night and drove a bus of senior citizens to mass every Sunday for over 20 years. In 1968, the family moved to the Holy Name parish and lived there until Jen passed away in 2013. Fran was very involved at Holy Name serving as eucharistic minister and as an usher for many years. He also served the church in many other capacities. For many years he oversaw Bingo and then eventually became the bookkeeper for the annual church festival. For many years, Fran was a mechanic and worked for his brother, Ambrose, at Phillips 66 in Mounds View then eventually opening his own shop, Fran's service, in Fridley, MN. Many, many times he took vehicles of fellow parishioners to the shop for any work that was needed (he rarely drove his own vehicle to work in most cases). He was very proud of the work he did and always had an answer for what's wrong with any car or truck. He enjoyed the company of family and loved to play cards especially with Mary and Leo Molumby. He loved Memorial weekend with the card playing and the time spent with family. A few years ago, a family ancestry book was compiled that included a photo with his parents holding both himself and Vince. It was the first time Fran had seen a picture of is older brother. Fran couldn't stop talking about that for some time. He also enjoyed flying out to Las Vegas to "warm up" with the Bartholomew's for their yearly trip. After Jen had passed, Fran moved into Walker and then an apartment in Bloomington. He loved to bake until his eyesight gave way, but at times still would manage to come up with something. After a couple of hard falls, Fran moved to assisted living in Burnsville. In addition to his other acts of generosity, Fran was also an organ donor. Mass of Christian burial is Saturday December 17th at 11:00am with visitation prior to the Mass starting at 9:00am at the Church of the Holy Name, 3637 11th Ave. South in Minneapolis. If you wish, you can send flowers directly to the church. All arrangements are being handled by Washburn-McReavy.

Tributes

Francis James DeGross

May 15, 1937 - December 2, 2022

Tributes

Francis James DeGross

May 15, 1937 - December 2, 2022

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