Mrs. Ellis
Frances “Fran” Ellis, age 95, passed away on Sept. 6, 2026.
Ser v ic e s will be 10 a.m. Friday, Sept. 11, at Saint Paul Lutheran Chur c h in Thorndale with Pastor Jeff Doria of f ic iat ing. Bur ial wi l l follow at Saint Paul Lutheran Cemetery.
The family will receive visitors from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday at Phillips & Luckey Funeral Home in Rockdale.
Born Frances Louise Schrader on Nov. 7, 1930, in Thorndale to Jesse Lee Schrader and Mary Elizabeth Simank, Fran attended St. Paul Lutheran School and graduated from Thorndale High School.
She married Edward W. Heintze on Aug. 8, 1948, at St. Paul Lutheran Church in Thorndale. Throughout the early years of marriage, she was a farmer’s wife. Edward and Fran welcomed three children—Sarah, Jane and Dale.
As her children got older, Fran switched careers from the tradwife to working at Taylor MFG, then worked seasonally for the IRS. Eventually, Fran began working for the US Geological Survey Water Resource Division, where she retired after 21 years.
She married Newton Mac Ellis on March 5, 1983, in Austin. She inherited three bonus daughters—Cheryl, Cynthia and Catherine.
Fran was a lover of all kinds of handwork. Throughout her life, she enjoyed creating ceramics, crocheting and knitting, partaking in cross-stitch and pine needle basket weaving, stained glass, and most notably quilting. She was a Bastrop Quilter and a charter member of the La Grange Quilt Guild. Not only did Fran enjoy making quilts, but she also loved attending quilt shows with her sisters and daughters.
In addition to her many crafts, Fran was part of the Austin Rock Club and Austin Gem & Mineral Society along with her late husband, Mac.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Jesse Lee and Mary Elizabeth Schrader, and her husbands, Edward Heintze and Mac Ellis.
Her three children survive her, Sarah Beard (Tim), Jane Becker (Dennis) and Dale Heintze (Melissa); three stepchildren, Cheryl Ellis (Rizk Ikhrais), Cynthia Ellis (Rich Ralph) and Catherine Pellizzari (Trey Pellizzari); her two sisters, Marilyn Smith and Joyce Barnes; and a brother, Jesse Milton; also, nine grandchildren, 11 great-grandchildren and a great-great-grandchild.