Frances Simonsen Howard

Frances Simonsen Howard died on February 19th, 2026, at her home in Edmonds, WA, three months short of her 100th birthday. Her family and a few close friends were with her constantly during her final days. As sad as that time was for her survivors, it was also exhilarating to intimately share her experience of leaving this world. We will remember many things about Fran, particularly her empathy and sensitivity, her ardent spirituality, and her commitment to the values of peace and justice.

Frannie was born into a Danish immigrant family as Frances Muriel Simonsen, the second of four children. She had an older sister and two younger brothers. Her father emigrated to America as an 18-year-old, and her mother was a first generation American of Danish parents. Her father started a tree nursery north of Chicago, which ended up thriving. Both of her parents had a “by the bootstraps” work ethic that influenced their children, and they grew up embraced by a large Danish community of similar values.

She and her siblings attended a rural, three-room elementary school (there were eight students in her 8th grade graduating class). This humble institution fostered in her a love of learning and great curiosity about life. She went on to a large high school on Chicago's North Shore, where she excelled academically. She learned to fly a Piper Cub in high school, paying for the lessons from money earned at a part-time job, and she dreamed of a career in writing and/or travel.

Fran went on to attend college at the University of Southern California and the University of Colorado.  Upon graduation, still unsure of a career path, she spent a summer at an international work camp in post-war Italy under the direction of the World Council of Churches. This led her to the University of Chicago Theological Seminary, where she met her future husband, Webb, a fellow "special-student" who was a reserve Air Force pilot awaiting a call to active duty in Korea. Neither had any intention of entering church-related careers, although both recognized that they were on a spiritual quest.

Webb’s military re-call never came, so he remained in seminary, graduated, and was ordained. Within months of their meeting they were married, and eventually Webb accepted a pastor position at a church in the Chicago suburbs. Four children—two sons and two daughters—were born in the succeeding years. Fran felt fulfilled and happy as a wife and mother and played an active role as a minister's wife.

In the years to follow, they moved to parishes in New York State and Florida. While they were living in Miami, she trained as a therapist in Clinical Transactional Analysis (remember “I’m OK – You’re OK”?) and established a private counseling practice. When Webb made a career move to a church in Ormond Beach, Florida, she soon joined the faculty at Daytona Beach Community College as an Instructor and Counselor in the college Women's Center.

Just before Christmas of 1998, Webb died, and Fran soon moved to the Pacific Northwest, where all four of her married children (as well as four grandchildren) were living. She bought a cute mid-century home in Edmonds, where she lived for the rest of her life. She loved being close to both the mountains and Puget Sound and led a very busy life with connections to family, non-profit organizations, and her church, Amazing Grace in Ballard. Her travel adventures included a trip to the Camino de Santiago in Spain, where she and a friend walked about 300 miles of this famous pilgrimage route; the Australian Outback to experience Aboriginal culture firsthand; Chile, to attend a shamanic practices gathering at the Four Winds Society retreat center of Dr. Alberto Villoldo; and Kenya as part of an Amazing Grace Global Service trip in support of Greenlight Education Center, a Kenyan non-profit.

Fran was keenly interested and involved in causes and conditions that relate to human suffering and exploitation, particularly of the poor and oppressed. In this vein, she was a volunteer and board member at the Freedom Project, where she helped run classes and workshops in Non Violent Communication (NVC) both inside and outside Washington State prisons.

Born in 1926, Frannie came of age under the specter of menacing authoritarianism during the buildup to World War II. America’s prominent role in the Allied fight against Naziism and the broader criminality of the Axis Powers profoundly shaped her worldview. She spent her life believing in and advocating for a more just and tolerant world. Thus, she found it heartbreaking during her final years to see the rule of law and traditional Free World values come under such profound threat here in her own country. And yet, dear Frannie never stopped working on the equanimity and mindfulness taught by revered teachers like Buddhist sage Thich Nhat Hanh. Thankfully, she found great solace, wisdom, and renewal in these spiritual practices.

Fran is survived by her sons and daughters and their families: Laurie and David Hughes, grandson Jack Hughes and his wife Amanda, grandson Steven Hughes and his wife Nadia; Julie Sapadin, grandson Alex Sapadin, and granddaughter Window Sapadin; Jim and Wendy Howard; and Richard Howard and Michelle Foshee.

Join us for a celebration of Fran’s life at Amazing Grace Church, 2007 NW 61st Street in Ballard, at 2 PM on May 23, 2026.