Frances M. Wheeler, age 94, longtime Lemmon businesswoman, passed away on Sunday, December 4, 2011 at Five Counties Nursing Home in Lemmon.

The Funeral Service will be held at 1:30pm on Saturday, December 10, 2011 at Spencer Memorial Presbyterian Church in Lemmon. Pastor Florence Hoff will officiate with burial in Greenhill Cemetery.

Special music will be provided by Marilyn Willey and Lee Butler.

Serving as casketbearers are her grandchildren. All friends are considered honorary bearers.

A memorial has been established to the Frances Wheeler Scholarship Fund.

Frances Mae (Surring) Wheeler was born to Delbert F. and Phoebe Ann (Warburton) Surring on May 8, 1917 in Ellingson, SD. She was raised on a homestead south of Reeder, ND in the northwestern corner of Perkins County. From the farm her family moved to Reeder until 1928, when her father relocated to Bison, SD. Eight years later Fran's father came to Lemmon and purchased a barber shop.

Fran graduated, with honors, from Bison High School in 1936. After high school she attended Samuel's School of Hair Dressing and Cosmetology at Sioux City, IA. She then returned to Lemmon and worked with her sister in Lucille's Beauty Salon.

On September 15, 1939 Fran and Robert (R.B.) Wheeler were united in marriage in Lemmon. This union lasted for 72 years. The couple then moved to Minneapolis where R.B. was employed by the Gamble Co. When R.B. entered the army in 1942, Fran moved to Washington, D.C. and worked for the FBI.

After the war, R.B. and Fran purchased from R.M. Horr the jewelry manufacturing company that would become Wheeler Mfg. Co., Inc. She worked alongside her husband until she retired in 2001. Fran proficiently looked after the accounts receivable of Wheeler Mfg. She also hand engraved rings in the early years of the business.

To this union were born two sons: Rob Lance and Bradford James. Fran was a caring and loving mother. She was blessed with five grandchildren and two great grandchildren.

Fran always emphasized obtaining a good education. She was an avid reader and held the Lemmon School System, the Lemmon Library, the Lemmon Area Medical Association, and the Grand River Museum close in her philanthropic interests.

Fran was a long time member of Spencer Memorial Presbyterian Church. She held the position of Sunday School Superintendent, Cub Scout Den Mother, and was an active member of the 20th Century Women's Club.

Fran loved the peace and serenity of the rural plains. She always enjoyed rides in the country observing wildlife. She was known for her stylish hats and her love for flowers and gardening.

She is survived by her husband R.B. Wheeler, Lemmon, SD; two sons, Rob (Colette) Wheeler of Lemmon, SD and Brad (Deborah) Wheeler of Lemmon, SD.; five grandchildren, Jacey (Mitch) Messer, Rapid City, SD, Julia Wheeler, Rochester, MN, Lyndsey Wheeler, Lemmon, SD, Lucas Wheeler, Summerset, SD, William Jeffrey Wheeler, Seattle, WA; two great grandchildren, Morgen Frances Messer and Mayve Julianne Messer; nieces, Carol (Ray) Millard, Hope, ID, Barbara Still, Vail, AZ, and Holly (Jeff) Bennett, Bloomington, MN.

Fran was preceded in death by her father and mother, Delbert and Phoebe Surring, her sister Lucille Seargant, her brother, Wesley Surring, an infant brother, and nephew, Clark Surring.

Visitation will be on Friday from 1:00 to 7:00pm at the Evanson-Jensen Funeral Home in Lemmon.