Alice "Fran" Wilson Hartwell

Fran Hartwell passed away peacefully on October 22, 2024 with her daughters, Stacey and Steffi, by her side. At the hospital, she wrote, “I love my home, I love my life, and mostly I love my two daughters. I have been blessed.” Born October 19, 1941, in Melrose, Massachusetts, Fran lived an extraordinary life between Greenwich, Connecticut and Hutchinson Island, Florida where she trained as a junior Olympic diver. She attended the University of Connecticut and was captain of the Lady Dolphinettes, the school’s synchronized swimming team, and a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority. Graduating with her MPE she became a beloved physical education teacher at Tenacre School in Wellesley, Massachusetts during the day. In the evenings she coached Babson College’s first women’s volleyball and basketball teams. She also coached several All-American divers on the swimming teams at Babson and Wellesley colleges. She was inducted into Babson College’s Athletic Hall of Fame in the 1990s. She relocated to Florida after attending night school and receiving her RN. For the last 30 years of her life, Fran resided at the Yacht and Country Club in Stuart, Florida where she was a nurse until retirement and enjoyed golf as president of the Lady 9-Holers. Fran loved her Marlboros, red wine, tea sandwiches, and Hostess treats. She relished family board games and her pink IPad. She cherished her friends, laughter, plants, and the bunnies in her backyard. Fran was the much-loved mother, mother-in-law, and grandmother to: Stacey Hartwell and her sons Simon and Henry Comras; and Stephanie Hartwell and Douglas Lantigua and their daughters Ella and Lela Lantigua; and all their 4 legged furry friends. She will live on in all their acts of kindness.

A celebration of her life will be held at the Yacht and Country Club in late December 2024.