Minna Hessenthaler Franch died in the New Horizons Care Center in Lovellon Sept. 9, 2008. She was born Feb. 9, 1916, in Glasgow, Mont. To Carl Hessenthaler and Katie Zurcher Hessenthaler on the family farm north of Kane.


The oldest of 11 children, she attended schools in Kane and graduated from Lovell High School in 1934.


During World War II, she joined the Coast Guard and was stationed in New York City. Following her discharge she moved back to Wyoming, settling in Casper, where she met Henry Franch, marrying in November of 1960. They started and operated a very successful insurance and loan agency for many years.


Minna was an accomplished seamstress, an avid gardener and loved the fine arts. She and Henry enjoyed skiing and together they skied every major ski resort in the West, a hobby highlighted by skiing the Alps. They traveled extensively throughout the world. Minna lived life to the fullest and took advantage of every opportunity life offered. She enjoyed the outdoors, collecting rocks, arrowheads and fossils.


After the loss of her husband in August of 2003, she moved to the New Horizons Care Center in Lovell to be near her many nieces and nephews. She was loved by all who knew her.


She was preceded in death by her parents, brothers Charles, Paul, Walter, Eugene and Erwin, and her sisters Gertrude, Rosalie and Joyce. She is survived by sisters Jean Kimball of Yakima, Wash., and Ruth Schaffer (Don) of Loveland, Colo.


Memorial services will be held at Haskell Funeral Home in Lovell at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 13. Her final resting place will be next to her husband in Casper.