ASTON, Pa. — Sister Frances Acton, a Wilmington native who was a professed member of the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia for 71 years, died Sept. 24 in Assisi House. She was 96.
Sister Frances was born Frances Teresa Acton in Wilmington and was a member of Holy Rosary Parish in Claymont. A graduate of P.S. DuPont High School, she entered her religious congregation in 1953. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Villanova University and a master’s in community leadership from Regis University.
She ministered primarily in education and pastoral care. Sister Frances was in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia for 50 years, working as an elementary and high school teacher, as well as in parish ministry, congregational service and prayer ministry. She also spent time in South Carolina, North Carolina, Kentucky and New Jersey.
As a young woman, Sister Frances was a gold medalist in tennis in the Junior Olympics. She played the sport throughout her life, joining a tennis group in her early 80s to take up the sport again. She was also an enthusiastic camper and a skilled woodworker, according to her religious order. In addition, she loved animals and maintained numerous bird feeders.
Services were Oct. 1, with burial in Our Lady of Angels Cemetery in Aston. Donations in her name can be made to the Sisters of St. Francis Foundation, 609 S. Convent Road, Aston, PA 19014.
