Fran was born in Port Townsend, Washington on July 29, 1932, to Leta and Clark Youngs. Her grandparents came from Germany and Denmark and homesteaded at Eaglemont, Washington where her parents and Fran would later live. In 1950 Fran graduated from Port Townsend High School and married Robert Kittrell (Kit) O’Brien in 1951. As a military wife, she traveled with her husband and children from coast to coast until Kit retired from the Marine Corps when they moved back to Port Townsend in 1972. Fran worked at Seafirst, which later became Bank of America until she retired in 1987. After the passing of Kit in 1988, Fran came out of retirement and took over Kit’s Farmers Insurance business. She retired again in 2002, later moving to Chandler, Arizona to live with her daughter, Jere, until her death.
Fran is beloved and survived by her three children James O’Brien, Allen O’Brien, and Jere O’Brien-Kinne, and their respective spouses, Debbra, Jody, and Bill. Fran has three biological grandchildren, Brianna, Kelley, and Sarah, and four adopted grandchildren, Kory, Sean, Jayla, and Tanner. She also has two great-grandchildren, Beckett and Callan. Fran treasured her time with her grand and great-grandkids and loved being their GG or G-dog.
