Fran Gebes leaves indelible mark on Batavia
Envision a patriotic woman during World War II, working her hardest as a riveter and seamstress on the homefront — and then fervently carrying on that patriotism to assure future generations understood the sacrifice and commitment of our military personnel.
Such was the life of Frances Mary “Fran” Gebes of Batavia, a driving force behind Batavia VFW Post 1197 and nearly every aspect of community life that promoted patriotism.
Fran Gebes, who was Batavia's Citizen of the Year along with husband George in 2002, died Sunday at the age of 96 at her family home.
“Fran was genuinely committed to the Batavia VFW, the patriotism movement and building an appreciation of the military and what it means to the community spirit,” Batavia Mayor Jeff Schielke said of Gebes, who spent nearly 50 years volunteering for the Batavia VFW, including 20 years as the Post's bookkeeper.
Fran and George Gebes were instrumental in the fundraising efforts to get the VFW Post built on South River Street then initiating popular community gatherings.
Daughter Barbara Kalina remembers her mother working long hours for the Batavia VFW at various suppers and eventually the Friday Night Fish Fry as a member of the Ladies Auxiliary.
“I remember as a kid, when that property was first bought for that building, my mom did a lot of community work to organize chicken and beef dinners,” Kalina said. “It was in the 1950s, before there was a restaurant at every corner, and the dinners became very popular and my mom was one of the people spending the whole night roasting beef.”
Gebes, who moved to Batavia with her husband in 1938, was a riveter at Burgess Norton in Geneva during the war, and then a seamstress at two Batavia coat companies — Fox Valley Garment Co. and Starnell.
Kalina fondly recalls that her mother was given credit for helping organize the joyous homecoming parade for returning World War II veterans, and years later helped raise funds to create the popular Loyalty Day parade in Batavia. Her husband George, son Ralph and two brothers all served in the Navy.
Schielke was amazed at her contributions because she did it without any fanfare.
“She was never seeking fame or credit for her work,” Schielke said. “She was the epitome of patriotic spirit and she did so much to help the Batavia VFW attain a high profile as a Premier VFW Post.”
Kalina said her mother loved working with young students to teach them about military history and encourage them to participate in writing letters or sending goods overseas to military personnel.
Gebes, who suffered from Alzheimer's disease, is survived by her husband; daughter; sons Ralph Gebes of Batavia and Tom Gebes of Littleton, Texas; several grandchildren and great-grandchildren; three sisters and two brothers.
Visitation will be from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday at the Moss Family Funeral Home, 209 S. Batavia Ave., with a liturgical wake service at 6 p.m. and a VFW Auxiliary service at 7 p.m. The funeral Mass is at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at Holy Cross Church in Batavia, where Gebes was a member for 74 years.