Frances D. Neun

Frances Mary (Draus) Neun died Wednesday evening in the loving care of the family to which she devoted her earthly life. She was 96. Frances was born on April 25, 1925 in Brooklyn, N.Y. - the oldest daughter of James Ignatius Draus and Katherine (Maciej) Draus. She moved as a toddler to Meriden, Conn. where her parents ran a grocery store. St. Stanislaus Church was a center of spiritual and educational life: she received Eucharist, was confirmed and married on its altar, and she learned to speak English in its primary school before graduating from Meriden High School during World War II. Frances was one of many women, in the spirit of "Rosie the Riveter," who supported the war effort by inspecting shells for the Navy in a factory that normally made silverware. Frances married John Thomas Neun on July 12, 1952, and they raised three boys at a home in Wethersfield. She was a person of great faith who stressed the importance of education to her sons. Frances enjoyed spending time with her family, playing cards and relaxing on Black Point Beach near her summer "cottage" in Niantic. In 1968, she began working as a clerk for Colt Firearms in Samuel Colt's original factory in Hartford. She continued with Colt for more than 20 years - after her husband died from cancer in 1981. She kept busy in retirement by traveling with close friends, visiting area senior centers for card games and making the occasional trip to Foxwoods. She attended Mass daily. Frances remained healthy and lived independently in the house on Dorlen Circle that she and John bought in 1956 until she was 90 years old. Frances was predeceased by her parents, her sister Michaline (Roman) Sikora and her brother Thomas (Carol) Draus. She is survived by her three sons John Augustine (Paula Vielkind) Neun of Clifton Park, N.Y.; Raymond (Patricia) Neun of Franklin, N.H. and David Neun of Niantic, Conn. She was a proud grandmother - or "Babci" - to Marybeth Neun of Florida, Kathleen (Kyle) Jones of Rhode Island, John Vielkind-Neun of Texas and James (Katherine Nadeau) Vielkind-Neun of New York. She also lived to meet three great-grandchildren: Brooke, Isabel and Brayden, as well as many loving nieces, nephews and friends. . The family would like to thank the staff of the Golden Crest in Franklin, N.H. for their loving care of Frances as she battled dementia in the final years of her life. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Monday, Oct. 25, 2021 at 11:00 am at The Church of The Incarnation, 544 Prospect St., Wethersfield, CT. Masks are required in church. Burial will follow at St. Stanislaus Cemetery in Meriden, CT at 1:00 pm. Thibault-Neun Funeral Home in Franklin, NH is assisting with arrangements. For an online guestbook, please visit www.neunfuneralhomes.com

Frances D. Neun

October 13, 2021