Together Forever

Two weeks after Grandma passed away, Grandpa joined her in heaven. He suffered brain damage from a fall, and there was nothing that could be done to save him. We made it down on Friday to give Grandpa our love, kisses, and thanks for the gifts he has given us... and said our goodbyes before he passed. Words can't express the tremendous loss we are feeling. Services will be next Saturday in Napa.

Wednesday, December 05, 2007
NAPA

John Alvin Franco passed peacefully on the morning of Friday, Dec. 1, 2007. John was born Jan. 18, 1916, in Napa, to John (Waan) and Amelia Franco. He graduated from Napa High School in 1934 and married Eleanor Gertrude Niccolls on Oct. 23, 1937. John and Eleanor recently celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary.

John was an excellent athlete throughout high school and was inducted into the Napa High School Athletic Hall of Fame in 1998. He starred in football, basketball and baseball. On the varsity football team he scored the winning touchdown against Analy High in 1932. He was the leading scorer on the 1932-33 "B" Basketball Team which won the Section A Championship that year and he was the starting forward on the 1933-34 "A" Basketball Team. However, most of his athletic accolades were garnered from his success on the baseball diamond.

John was the starting shortstop for the Napa High varsity in the seasons of 1931, 1932 and 1933. After each of his high school years, John played adult summer baseball for the Napa State Hospital team where he was coached by major league great Jimmy Dykes, who was at the peak of his career. Very few high school ball players were able to play at this level, as these teams traveled and competed throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. A Napa Register sports page article from 1932 states, "John Franco, the new shortstop, is fast developing into a real baseball player. At the rate he is going, 'Muck' is sure to follow in the footsteps of Joe Cronin, now playing with Washington." Both Dykes and Cronin were sport heroes for the young Muck Franco.

In 1955 at the Napa Fairgrounds, the City Softball League honored Muck for his "untiring efforts in the development of youth in baseball and softball" and for spending "a major portion of his free time teaching youngsters the fundamentals of the game." From the 1940s to the 1970s Muck was a highly respected bowler competing in local leagues.

In the years between high school graduation and marriage, John served in the California Conservation Corps in Lake Tahoe and began his career in the meat-cutting business. His career as one of Napa's premiere meat cutters began with hitchhiking trips to Vallejo and continued at the stockyards on Soscol Avenue, near the current Elks Club. He then went to work at Learman's Market on Second Street and later partnered with Mario Conti at Fairview Market and United Market in downtown Napa.In 1957 he opened Franco's Market on Kilburn Avenue. He and Eleanor continued operations there with help from their five sons until 1974. In his semi-retired years he worked with Ed Algeo at Jefferson Food Market and later with Jim Andrews at Andrews' Meat Market and Deli on Main Street.

Muck remained active in the lives of his children and their families throughout his later years, and they, in turn, cherished the time they spent with him. He was a devoted Catholic and worshipped at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church.In retirement Muck remained an active fan of local high school sports, dabbled in the game of golf, enjoyed weekend trips to Lake Tahoe and Reno to play Keno, and traveled cross-country to New England, New York, Washington D.C. and Virginia, and to Hawaii on four separate occasions.

He is survived by his sons, Ross (Suzanne) of Oakland, Jim (Lynn) of Buffalo, Mo., Les (Marsha) of Napa, Vic (Barbara) of Napa, and Bob (Angela) of Honolulu, Hawaii.He is also survived by 16 grandchildren: Thomas (Devon), David (Sonia), John (Nicola), Peter (Sunita), Ann Marie (Wes Scribner), Paul, Deborah, Dinnies Butler, Dejean Eggers, Marcus, Mindy (Rudy Beasley), Matt (Carolyn), Alynda (Matt Davis), Karen, Miguel and Maria.

He is also survived by 10 great-grandchildren: Kylie and Owen Scribner, Jessica and Alex Butler, Sean Eggers, Jaden, Jordan, and Kaia Beasley, and Zachary and Lucas Franco.He is pre-deceased by two brothers, Carl, and Francis (affectionately known as "Ting"), and two sisters, Laurie Kerri and Christine Pescio.

A funeral Mass will be held Saturday, Dec. 8, 10:30 a.m. at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, with a reception at the St. John's Hall directly after interment. A viewing will be held on Friday, Dec. 7, from 4-7:30 p.m., followed by a rosary at Richard Pierce Funeral Service, 1660 Silverado Trail, Napa. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the St. John the Baptist Church. Friends may offer their condolences to the family online at www.rpfsc.com.