Frances H. Willis

The world lost a shining presence and Hallmark lost one of its best customers on Monday, November 22, 2021, when Frances Hope Willis of Bluffton, South Carolina died peacefully after a brief illness at the age of 91.

Frances was born on April 16, 1930, in Kannapolis, North Carolina to the late Bleeker Isbelle Morgan Fortner and Earl Edgar Fortner, and lived in Kannapolis, North Carolina until she was 12 years old. Her family moved to Baltimore, Maryland where her father was a first class welder and was needed to repair ships damaged at Pearl Harbor. Frances graduated from James Addams Vocational High School in 1946 and married Perrow (Perry) Willis on June 5, 1948.

She is survived by four sons, Michael Keith Willis (Julie) of Bluffton, SC, David Perry Willis, Sr. (Jenny) of Bluffton, SC, Paul Gene Willis (Angie) of Calabash, NC, Joel Alan Willis (Connie) of La Plata, MD, one daughter Judith Helen Boswell of Bluffton, SC, and one brother, Earl Ray Fortner of Fulton, Kentucky. Frances is predeceased by her husband, Perry Willis, her daughter Janet Louise Fletcher, her son-in-law, Charles Matthew Boswell and her great grandchild Nikolai Kaim. Frances so loved her grandchildren, and that feeling was shared among her 13 grandchildren, 20 great grandchildren and 2 great-great grandchildren

Frances was a godly woman who loved the Lord with all her heart and was a longtime member of Glenn Street Baptist Church in Newberry, SC. She loved to sing in the church choir and would yodel every chance she got. She leaves behind a legacy of God’s amazing love and grace and was an example to all who knew her.

The family will receive friends on Saturday, December 4, 2021, beginning at 1:00 pm at Glenn Street Baptist Church, 300 Glenn Street, Newberry, SC followed by a service to celebrate her life at 2:30. Interment will be at Newberry Memorial Gardens.