Francis J Bates, 85, of Peabody, MA, husband of Dorothy Mary (McDonald) Bates, with whom he shared 58 years of marriage, passed away peacefully during their winter vacation in Naples, Florida on Saturday morning, March 7, 2015. He was the youngest child of the late Congressman and Salem mayor George J Bates and Nora (Jennings) Bates. Raised in Salem, he was educated at St John’s Preparatory School, Danvers, MA and Devitt Preparatory School, Washington, DC and graduated from Burdett College, Boston, MA.
Fran started his work life at the Boston and Maine Railroad in accounting, and subsequently enjoyed a fruitful, 35 year career as a manager of data processing operations with New England Telephone Company and NYNEX, retiring in 1992. After his retirement, he continued to work as a Deputy Sherriff in Essex County as a civil process server.
He was devoted to giving back to his community and served as the Grand Knight of the Knights of Columbus, Veragua Council No 76, Salem, MA, was active in the Salem Kiwanis, and served as a lector for many years at his parish, St Ann’s in Peabody, MA. He enjoyed golfing whenever the weather allowed and skiing in the winter, planning many vacation trips throughout New England and Canada with his wife and children.
Fran also enjoyed the adventures of ocean boating and was a member of the Corinthian Yacht Club, Marblehead, MA He especially loved spending time with his eight grandsons, watching their sporting events and providing wisdom and guidance as they grew.
In addition to his wife, Fran is survived by his children, Francis J Bates Jr, of Topsfield, MA, JoAnne Bates Skerritt, and her fiancée Ronald Moulton, of Danvers, MA, and Thomas M Bates of Marblehead, MA, his brother Captain Raymond H Bates, USN of Marblehead, MA, and his sister Carolyn Stanton of Marblehead, MA, He was predeceased by his brothers Congressman William H Bates, George J Bates, and Thomas Bates and his sisters Mary Sawtelle, Catherine Ginty, and Margaret Bates. He will be sadly missed by his grandsons Colin F Bates, Ryan T Skerritt, Colby J Bates, Andrew T. Bates, Riley J Bates, Timothy F Skerritt, Tyler C. Bates, and Christian T Bates. He was also loved and admired by his sons’ significant others, Kathleen Serio and Luanne Butler. He leaves many nieces and nephews who enjoyed family gatherings and summer afternoons on the Corinthian Yacht Club porch with Uncle Fran, and many friends, especially those at Countryside in Naples, Florida, where he spent 26 enjoyable winter seasons.
His funeral Mass will be celebrated on Wed, March 18, at 9:15 a.m. from the Murphy Funeral Home, 85 Federal St. (cor of North St) Salem followed by a Funeral Mass at St. Ann’s Parish, 140 Lynn Street, Peabody at 10a.m. Relatives and friends are warmly invited to attend. Visiting hours will be held at Murphy Funeral Home on Tuesday, March 17, from 4 to 7 p.m. Burial will immediately follow the funeral Mass at St. Mary’s Cemetery, Salem. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations be made to St. Ann’s Church 140 Lynn Street, Peabody, MA 01960. Murphy Funeral Home.
Fran started his work life at the Boston and Maine Railroad in accounting, and subsequently enjoyed a fruitful, 35 year career as a manager of data processing operations with New England Telephone Company and NYNEX, retiring in 1992. After his retirement, he continued to work as a Deputy Sherriff in Essex County as a civil process server.
He was devoted to giving back to his community and served as the Grand Knight of the Knights of Columbus, Veragua Council No 76, Salem, MA, was active in the Salem Kiwanis, and served as a lector for many years at his parish, St Ann’s in Peabody, MA. He enjoyed golfing whenever the weather allowed and skiing in the winter, planning many vacation trips throughout New England and Canada with his wife and children.
Fran also enjoyed the adventures of ocean boating and was a member of the Corinthian Yacht Club, Marblehead, MA He especially loved spending time with his eight grandsons, watching their sporting events and providing wisdom and guidance as they grew.
In addition to his wife, Fran is survived by his children, Francis J Bates Jr, of Topsfield, MA, JoAnne Bates Skerritt, and her fiancée Ronald Moulton, of Danvers, MA, and Thomas M Bates of Marblehead, MA, his brother Captain Raymond H Bates, USN of Marblehead, MA, and his sister Carolyn Stanton of Marblehead, MA, He was predeceased by his brothers Congressman William H Bates, George J Bates, and Thomas Bates and his sisters Mary Sawtelle, Catherine Ginty, and Margaret Bates. He will be sadly missed by his grandsons Colin F Bates, Ryan T Skerritt, Colby J Bates, Andrew T. Bates, Riley J Bates, Timothy F Skerritt, Tyler C. Bates, and Christian T Bates. He was also loved and admired by his sons’ significant others, Kathleen Serio and Luanne Butler. He leaves many nieces and nephews who enjoyed family gatherings and summer afternoons on the Corinthian Yacht Club porch with Uncle Fran, and many friends, especially those at Countryside in Naples, Florida, where he spent 26 enjoyable winter seasons.
His funeral Mass will be celebrated on Wed, March 18, at 9:15 a.m. from the Murphy Funeral Home, 85 Federal St. (cor of North St) Salem followed by a Funeral Mass at St. Ann’s Parish, 140 Lynn Street, Peabody at 10a.m. Relatives and friends are warmly invited to attend. Visiting hours will be held at Murphy Funeral Home on Tuesday, March 17, from 4 to 7 p.m. Burial will immediately follow the funeral Mass at St. Mary’s Cemetery, Salem. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations be made to St. Ann’s Church 140 Lynn Street, Peabody, MA 01960. Murphy Funeral Home.
Francis J Bates, 85, of Peabody, MA, husband of Dorothy Mary (McDonald) Bates, with whom he shared 58 years of marriage, passed away peacefully during their winter vacation in Naples, Florida on Saturday morning, March 7, 2015. He was the youngest child of the late Congressman and Salem mayor George J Bates and Nora (Jennings) Bates. Raised in Salem, he was educated at St John’s Preparatory School, Danvers, MA and Devitt Preparatory School, Washington, DC and graduated from Burdett College, Boston, MA.
Fran started his work life at the Boston and Maine Railroad in accounting, and subsequently enjoyed a fruitful, 35 year career as a manager of data processing operations with New England Telephone Company and NYNEX, retiring in 1992. After his retirement, he continued to work as a Deputy Sherriff in Essex County as a civil process server.
He was devoted to giving back to his community and served as the Grand Knight of the Knights of Columbus, Veragua Council No 76, Salem, MA, was active in the Salem Kiwanis, and served as a lector for many years at his parish, St Ann’s in Peabody, MA. He enjoyed golfing whenever the weather allowed and skiing in the winter, planning many vacation trips throughout New England and Canada with his wife and children.
Fran also enjoyed the adventures of ocean boating and was a member of the Corinthian Yacht Club, Marblehead, MA He especially loved spending time with his eight grandsons, watching their sporting events and providing wisdom and guidance as they grew.
In addition to his wife, Fran is survived by his children, Francis J Bates Jr, of Topsfield, MA, JoAnne Bates Skerritt, and her fiancée Ronald Moulton, of Danvers, MA, and Thomas M Bates of Marblehead, MA, his brother Captain Raymond H Bates, USN of Marblehead, MA, and his sister Carolyn Stanton of Marblehead, MA, He was predeceased by his brothers Congressman William H Bates, George J Bates, and Thomas Bates and his sisters Mary Sawtelle, Catherine Ginty, and Margaret Bates. He will be sadly missed by his grandsons Colin F Bates, Ryan T Skerritt, Colby J Bates, Andrew T. Bates, Riley J Bates, Timothy F Skerritt, Tyler C. Bates, and Christian T Bates. He was also loved and admired by his sons’ significant others, Kathleen Serio and Luanne Butler. He leaves many nieces and nephews who enjoyed family gatherings and summer afternoons on the Corinthian Yacht Club porch with Uncle Fran, and many friends, especially those at Countryside in Naples, Florida, where he spent 26 enjoyable winter seasons.
His funeral Mass will be celebrated on Wed, March 18, at 9:15 a.m. from the Murphy Funeral Home, 85 Federal St. (cor of North St) Salem followed by a Funeral Mass at St. Ann’s Parish, 140 Lynn Street, Peabody at 10a.m. Relatives and friends are warmly invited to attend. Visiting hours will be held at Murphy Funeral Home on Tuesday, March 17, from 4 to 7 p.m. Burial will immediately follow the funeral Mass at St. Mary’s Cemetery, Salem. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations be made to St. Ann’s Church 140 Lynn Street, Peabody, MA 01960. Murphy Funeral Home.
Fran started his work life at the Boston and Maine Railroad in accounting, and subsequently enjoyed a fruitful, 35 year career as a manager of data processing operations with New England Telephone Company and NYNEX, retiring in 1992. After his retirement, he continued to work as a Deputy Sherriff in Essex County as a civil process server.
He was devoted to giving back to his community and served as the Grand Knight of the Knights of Columbus, Veragua Council No 76, Salem, MA, was active in the Salem Kiwanis, and served as a lector for many years at his parish, St Ann’s in Peabody, MA. He enjoyed golfing whenever the weather allowed and skiing in the winter, planning many vacation trips throughout New England and Canada with his wife and children.
Fran also enjoyed the adventures of ocean boating and was a member of the Corinthian Yacht Club, Marblehead, MA He especially loved spending time with his eight grandsons, watching their sporting events and providing wisdom and guidance as they grew.
In addition to his wife, Fran is survived by his children, Francis J Bates Jr, of Topsfield, MA, JoAnne Bates Skerritt, and her fiancée Ronald Moulton, of Danvers, MA, and Thomas M Bates of Marblehead, MA, his brother Captain Raymond H Bates, USN of Marblehead, MA, and his sister Carolyn Stanton of Marblehead, MA, He was predeceased by his brothers Congressman William H Bates, George J Bates, and Thomas Bates and his sisters Mary Sawtelle, Catherine Ginty, and Margaret Bates. He will be sadly missed by his grandsons Colin F Bates, Ryan T Skerritt, Colby J Bates, Andrew T. Bates, Riley J Bates, Timothy F Skerritt, Tyler C. Bates, and Christian T Bates. He was also loved and admired by his sons’ significant others, Kathleen Serio and Luanne Butler. He leaves many nieces and nephews who enjoyed family gatherings and summer afternoons on the Corinthian Yacht Club porch with Uncle Fran, and many friends, especially those at Countryside in Naples, Florida, where he spent 26 enjoyable winter seasons.
His funeral Mass will be celebrated on Wed, March 18, at 9:15 a.m. from the Murphy Funeral Home, 85 Federal St. (cor of North St) Salem followed by a Funeral Mass at St. Ann’s Parish, 140 Lynn Street, Peabody at 10a.m. Relatives and friends are warmly invited to attend. Visiting hours will be held at Murphy Funeral Home on Tuesday, March 17, from 4 to 7 p.m. Burial will immediately follow the funeral Mass at St. Mary’s Cemetery, Salem. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations be made to St. Ann’s Church 140 Lynn Street, Peabody, MA 01960. Murphy Funeral Home.
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