Skip and Frankie initially settled in Pueblo, Colo., where their three children, Jill, Jack, and Penny were born. The family moved from Pueblo to Tucson, Ariz., to Durango, Colo., before settling at Farmington, N.M. Frankie worked as a homemaker until the children were older, when she returned to college, commuting daily from Farmington to Durango. Frankie graduated summa cum laude with a degree in English literature in 1963 from Fort Lewis College. Throughout her life, Frankie had a passion for reading. She passed her love of literature on to her students at Farmington High School, where she taught school for two years.
In 1970, after the children were nearly grown, Frankie and Skip embarked on a grand new adventure. They purchased a small, nearly bankrupt, severely undercapitalized, community bank in Moab, Utah. While Frankie had no banking work experience, she was a quick learner, and soon Frankie and Skip were working side by side as an inimitable team to turn this bank around. In 1996, they capitalized on their gamble, years of hard work and dedication by merging their bank with a much larger regional bank – Zions Bank.
Above all, Frankie cherished her family. Frankie and Skip loved to travel with their children and grandchildren and, together, they explored such far-off places as Spain, Portugal, Alaska, Hawaii, Washington D.C., and New York. Closer to home, Frankie loved to take the mobile home on camping trips in the mountains of Colorado with the children and grandchildren. She also loved family gatherings for the holidays.
Frankie was a devout believer in Jesus Christ. She loved to read and study the Bible and was a longtime member of the Community Church of Moab.
She is survived by her husband, Skip; a younger brother, Robert Adamich of San Francisco, Calif.; her three children, Jill Jacobson (Gary) of Moab, Utah, Jack Nightingale of Farmington, N.M., and Penny Newman (Jim) of Montrose, Colo. Frankie is also survived by seven grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; and several cousins, nieces and nephews.
Funeral services were held at 11 a.m. Jan. 15 at Community Church of Moab. Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.SpanishValleyMortuary.com.