Frances A (Gray) Sutphin

Frances Anna Sutphin, 84, of Newton died on Tuesday, November 28, 2023, at MercyOne Newton Medical Center.  A memorial service will be held at 2:00 p.m., Tuesday, December 5, at the Wallace Family Funeral Home and Crematory. The family will greet friends from 1:00 p.m. until the time of service with a coffee time at the funeral home. Memorials to St. Jude Children’s Hospital may be left at the funeral home.

Frances, the daughter of Marjorie Beechler Gray, was born on March 8, 1939 in Ohio.  She grew up in Hillsboro and graduated from Hillsboro High School.  After living in several places including overseas in England, Frances moved to Arizona where she would meet Danny Sutphin.  They moved to Iowa and were married on October 14, 1974 in Newton. Frances worked as a telephone operator for the local Newton phone companies and was one of the last remaining operators when she retired in the late 1980’s. She then helped with merchandising and displays at Seiferts, her daughter’s clothing store in Newton. Frances also loved taking care of her grandchildren, Alex and Josh. 

Frances was a loving and devoted wife, mother, and grandmother. She truly enjoyed taking care of her home and her family. Cooking, cleaning, and decorating for holidays were important to her as a homemaker. She also loved to play BINGO and read.

Frances is survived by her husband, Dan Sutphin of Newton; daughter, Lori DePenning (fiancé, Tony Van Roekel) of Ankeny; grandchildren, Alex Sandholm and Josh Slea (Cailyn Correlus); her sister-in-law, Merle Gray; niece, Karen (Scott) Johnson; nephew, Eddie Gray; and great nieces, Courtney and Jessica. She was preceded in death by her mother; son, Michael Slea; her siblings, James Gray, Michael Gray, and Jeannie Baxter; and a nephew, Jimmy Gray.

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