Frances Sturdy
September 29, 1918 — April 25, 2008
Frances Sturdy
Frances West Modlin Sturdy died at home in Little Rock on Friday, April 25, 2008. She was born in 1918 in Clark County, Arkansas, two years before the 19th Amendment gave women the right to vote.
She married Jimmy Modlin in 1941, and he left immediately to serve in World War II in Germany and France while she remained stateside, enlisting in the Women's Army Corps. After Jimmy returned from the war, he and Frances established their home in Arkadelphia, Arkansas, and had four daughters.
After Jimmy's death in 1964, Frances succeeded him as Clark County Circuit Clerk. She remained active in politics, even after she returned to the classroom where she taught for many years.
After retiring, Frances married Dr. Robert A. Sturdy. For 20 years they shared a home in the country where she enjoyed gardening and painting. She also volunteered in her church library and as a reading tutor in the Arkadelphia public schools.
She is survived by her four daughters: Emma Ward, Marsha Opauski, Beth Deere, and Tomye Modlin, all of Little Rock; a stepson, Robert A. Sturdy III of Cleveland, Texas; one sister, Marcella Little of Birmingham, Alabama; seven grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, April 29, 2008, at the First United Methodist Church in Arkadelphia. Visitation with the family will be immediately following the service. In lieu of flowers memorials may be made to the Arkansas School for the Deaf, the Clark County Library, or the P.E.O. Scholar Award.
She married Jimmy Modlin in 1941, and he left immediately to serve in World War II in Germany and France while she remained stateside, enlisting in the Women's Army Corps. After Jimmy returned from the war, he and Frances established their home in Arkadelphia, Arkansas, and had four daughters.
After Jimmy's death in 1964, Frances succeeded him as Clark County Circuit Clerk. She remained active in politics, even after she returned to the classroom where she taught for many years.
After retiring, Frances married Dr. Robert A. Sturdy. For 20 years they shared a home in the country where she enjoyed gardening and painting. She also volunteered in her church library and as a reading tutor in the Arkadelphia public schools.
She is survived by her four daughters: Emma Ward, Marsha Opauski, Beth Deere, and Tomye Modlin, all of Little Rock; a stepson, Robert A. Sturdy III of Cleveland, Texas; one sister, Marcella Little of Birmingham, Alabama; seven grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, April 29, 2008, at the First United Methodist Church in Arkadelphia. Visitation with the family will be immediately following the service. In lieu of flowers memorials may be made to the Arkansas School for the Deaf, the Clark County Library, or the P.E.O. Scholar Award.
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Frances Sturdy, please visit our flower store.
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