Frances Franki Holloway

Frances Franki Holloway passed away Friday August 11th, 2006 in Austin, Texas. She was born February 11th, 1912 in Del Rio, Texas to descendants of Italian immigrants. Her paternal grandparents, Francis and Angelina Franki and maternal grandparents, David and Maria Serafini were some of the earliest settlers of the town. Better known as Gran-Fran, she was raised with both Italian and local Spanish customs and languages. Her father, Julius J. Franki worked the land and produced wine from the family vineyard. Her mother, Irene Serafini, kept busy raising eight children and preparing fruits and vegetables to be sold from the back of her husband’s mule drawn wagon. Frances grew up best friends with her cousin Elizabeth Qualia Miller, affectionately called her comadre who preceded her in death just this year. Frances graduated from Sacred Heart Catholic School and attended Incarnate Word University as a music major. She then worked at the Capital and boarded at a house where she met her future husband, William Ponder Holloway, who took his meals there. They were married in January of 1937. Looking for a place to call their home, they discovered The Ponderosa, or what has come to be known as The Wild Onion on April 30th 1947. They moved into the small house and the Holloways adopted four children, Margaret, Mary, Mike and Sarah. They all grew up there and when Sarah married, she moved back to the ranch to raise two children there in the same house she had lived and played in as a child. Bill Holloway, fondly remembered as Papa Holloway, passed away on January 2nd, 1972. Frances then married Hugo Kusenberger in December of 1977, also of Del Rio, Texas. They lived at The Wild Onion for over 20 years. Frances is preceded in death by husbands William Ponder Holloway and Hugo William Kusenberger; sisters, Marie Eccell and Lee Schiffbauer; brothers, Julius, Guido, Fred, David and Joseph Franki. She is survived by daughter, Peggy Holloway; daughter, Mary Herry and husband John; son, James Michael Holloway; and daughter, Sarah Edgerton and husband Andy; 14 grandchildren and numerous great-grandchildren. Gran-Fran will be most remembered by her grandchildren for the record player with Roy Rogers records, ham and cheese rollups, the sheer joy of cleaning her kitchen sinks, her checking in on us at night to see if we were really asleep when we weren’t, her fond love of the numerous birds, plants and flowers in her yard and the big, kind caring love that she shared with us. She has taught us so much and shaped who we have become. Pallbearers will be Mark and Greg Franki, Mickey Williams, and Robert, Anthony and Jacob Kusenberger. Honorary pallbearers will be Marvin Henry and Morris Shapiro. Frances’ stepson Robert Kusenberger will conduct the Rosary and part of the Mass. A Rosary will be held at 6:00 P.M. on Sunday, August 13, 2006 at Wilke-Clay-Fish Funeral Home, 2620 South Congress. A Mass will be held at 2:00 P.M. on Monday, August 14th at St. Ignatius Martyr Catholic Church, 126 West Oltorf followed by burial at Live Oak Cemetery on Twin Creeks Road. Memorials and guestbook online at wcfish.com