Frances Bealle Bruce of Greensboro, Ga., formerly of Statesville, N.C., passed away on Monday, December 28, 2020, at St. Mary’s Good Samaritan Hospital in Greensboro, Ga., at the age of 91. Born November 6, 1929, in Columbus, Miss., she was the daughter of the late William Albert Bealle and Elsie Unger Bealle.

Frances was a graduate of Greenwood High School in Mississippi and Mississippi State College for Women. On December 19, 1950, she married John Milton Bruce. They lived in Winona, Miss., for several years, where she was a teacher and where many special friends remain. She was a homemaker who was dedicated to serving her community. Frances was a member of Broad Street United Methodist Church and attended Greensboro First United Methodist Church after moving to Greene County from Statesville, N.C., in April of 2019. She was a devoted member of Broad Street UMC, serving on numerous committees there. She was an active member of the Christian Forum Sunday School Class and was past president of the United Methodist Women. She served on the Board of Directors for the Children’s Home in Winston-Salem, N.C., as well as the ElderCenter in Statesville. She was also a member of Beta Sigma Phi Sorority and a Ruby Life Master in the American Contract Bridge League. She loved to cook and share her culinary gifts with those she loved.

She will be remembered as a sweet soul, full of optimism and hope, whose genuine interest in others was a gift she gave freely and lavishly. She was a shining example of God’s great love lived out on earth, loving deeply and deeply loved in return. “There are some who shine a light so great in the world that even after they have gone, the light remains.” (Anonymous)

In addition to her husband, John Milton Bruce, she was preceded in death by a daughter, Johnsey Frances Bruce, in 1961.

Survivors include her daughters, Virginia Bruce Martin of Atlanta, Ga., and Nell Bruce Willis and husband Ron of Greensboro, Ga.; and beloved grandson, John Chandler Martin of Los Angeles, Calif. She is also survived by her sister-in-law, Doris Bruce, and niece Stacy Bruce Hays and husband Joey of West Point, Miss., and nephews Clark Bruce and wife Donna and Layne Bruce of Madison, Miss.; great nephews Thomas and Clark Hays; great niece Mary Helon Hays; first cousin, James Burnitt Bealle of Winston-Salem, N.C.; and other cousins. She is also survived by her granddogs, Dash & Alamo, whom she adored.

Graveside Services will be held in Oakwood Cemetery in Statesville, N.C., and the family will hold a memorial service in celebration of Frances’s life at a later date. The family requests memorials be made to Broad Street United Methodist Church, 315 W. Broad Street, Statesville, NC 28677.

McCommons Funeral Home, 109 W. Broad Street, Greensboro, Ga., (706) 453-2626, is in charge of local arrangements. 

Arrangements in North Carolina will be handled by Bunch-Johnson Funeral Home, 705 Davie Avenue, Statesville, N.C., (704) 873-7223. Visit www.bunchjohnsonfuneralhome.com to sign the online guest register.