Donor Stories

Donor Stories:
Frances Harris

Frances was born on July 9, 1913 in Edgewick, Washington, one of six children of Elisha and Anna Jensen Harris. She graduated from Bellingham High School in 1930 and after additional schooling, worked in different jobs over several years, first serving as a substitute teacher, then a bookkeeper and then a clerk at Frederick & Nelson in downtown Seattle. She spent the rest of her working career as the secretary to the Administrator of the Washington State Bar Association.

She never married, never had children, never owned a car or a house and was never on the public spotlight. Nevertheless, she applied herself fully in everything she did. She was very outgoing, personable and independent, lived life very intentionally and never stopped learning. According to her friends, she read copiously and made lists of the books she read. She was always taking language classes and became a very knowledgeable and precise grammarian. She would not hesitate to correct you if you spoke ungrammatically – even if you were an attorney! She was extremely well-organized and kept track of all her investments. After retiring, Frances became a world traveler and an enthusiastic antique collector, further expanding her knowledge of people, places, culture and history.

Frances always lived downtown and walked miles each day to her destinations or loved taking the bus for more distant places. She looked like a healthy 80 year-old in her 90s and walked everywhere until she was 96 years old. During these walks, she became keenly aware of the suffering of homeless and impoverished human beings and this made a deep impression in her.

Later in life she decided to set two goals for herself: to be healthy enough to live to be 100 years old and to be able to save $1 million dollars that she can donate to charity. She met her first goal and lived three months passed her 100th birthday. And she also met her second goal and accumulated an estate in excess of $1 million dollars. She bequeathed her estate to three charities that serve to feed, clothe, comfort and care for the most vulnerable among us. One third of her estate supported Union Gospel Mission, one third went to the Salvation Army and the final third went to Seattle Children’s. Her bequest to Children’s will help ensure that sick and injured children receive the best care possible, regardless of their family’s ability to pay.

Through her life and legacy, Frances invites us to live and die optimally, happily, generously and purposefully. She is an inspiration for us all.