Frances M. (Gauvreau) Rice

PRINCETON - Frances M. (Gauvreau) Rice, beloved wife of the late Clayton I. Rice, passed away peacefully surrounded by her family on Thursday, January 21, 2021, at the Oakdale Rehabilitation and Skilled Nursing Center. Born in Holden and raised in Princeton, she was a daughter of Leo and Emma (Linnus) Gauvreau.

Her life was centered on family and friends. She was a member of the First Congregational Church in Princeton. She served as a Deaconess and participated in many church fundraising committees. Frances was employed as the Office Manager at Princeton Municipal Light Department. She retired in 1986, completing 30 years. Frances was a “people person” and truly believed that everyone was special in their own unique way.

She will be lovingly missed and remembered by her son, Dennis C. Rice and his wife, Linda of Oakham; her two daughters, Linda Taylor and her husband, Edgar of The Villages, FL and Dale Stafford of Princeton; her two sisters, Dorothy Ohlson of West Boylston and Nancy Ball and her husband, Charles of Princeton; twelve grandchildren and fifteen great-grandchildren; and many (special) nieces and nephews. In addition to her parents and her husband of 63 years, Clayton, she was predeceased by her daughter, Dawn March who passed away in 1992; her two sisters, Irene Kowalczk and Jean Trudeau; her brother, Frederick Gauvreau; and her son-in-law, K. Thomas Stafford.

Frances family would like to extend their sincere gratitude to the staff at the Oakdale Rehabilitation and Skilled Nursing Center for the loving and wonderful care they provided.

Relatives and friends are invited to gather with the family from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, January 30, 2021, in the Miles Funeral Home, 1158 Main Street, Holden. Appropriate Covid-19 protocol will be observed including the use of face masks and social distancing. A funeral service honoring her life will follow at 12 noon at the First Congregational Church, 14 Mountain Road, Princeton. She will be laid to rest beside her husband at the Massachusetts Veterans' Memorial Cemetery, Winchendon. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the First Congregational Church in Princeton.

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