Frances Elizabeth Semmler Hartenstein Finch passed away on December 31, 2012, at age 64. Frances was born in Guadalupe County on July 24, 1948, and lived and worked among us most of her life. Frances attended school in Seguin and at Southwest Texas University. She began her career at B.B. Schraub's Guadalupe County Abstract Company. She continued with Alamo Title and, at the time of her death, was the Chief Escrow Officer and Manager of Independence Title Company. Her career in the Title Business spanned over 40 years. She was recognized by employers for longevity and the quality of her service to customers.
Frances was generous to many causes. As a member of the Rotary Club of Seguin, Frances contributed greatly to that organization's fundraising and philanthropic endeavors and was recognized as a Paul Harris Fellow. Frances had many life-long relationships and made friends everywhere she went. As one friend wrote: "Frances was loved for her zest for life, her contagious smile, and her ability to make everyone around her feel comfortable and at ease." In addition to her many friends, she was a devoted, loving, and giving wife, mother, and grandmother. She will be greatly missed by many. Frances is survived by her husband, Stephen Finch of Seguin; her daughter, Lisa Pacheco (Tino) of San Marcos; her grandchildren Diego and Avery Pacheco of San Marcos; her mother, Leonora Kuhn (Maurice West) of Kingsbury; her sister Suzy Wilson (Howard) of Houston; her brother John Semmler (Judy) of Houston; her aunts, Margaret Taylor and Jackie Ball of Kingsbury and ViVi Pennington of Houston; her numerous nieces and their spouses and children; her many cousins; and, the extended Finch family of various locations in Texas, the US, and Canada. She was preceded in death by her first husband, Larry Hartenstein of Seguin; her father, Woodrow Semmler of Kingsbury; her maternal grandparents, Jaquelin Schmidt and Frank "Doc" Schmidt of Kingsbury; and, her paternal grandparents Henry Semmler and Maude Larison Semmler of Kingsbury. Visitation will be held at Tres Hewell Mortuary, 165 Tor Drive in Seguin, on Thursday, January 3, 2013, from 12-7 p.m. with the family present from 5-7 p.m. Services to remember Frances will be held on Friday, January 4, 2013, at 10:30 a.m. at First Presbyterian Church of Seguin, 305 N. King Street (King and Walnut), Dr. Carl McCauley and Rev. Jim Price officiating. Burial will occur in the Kingsbury Cemetery. A reception will follow at Karrick Hall at the Presbyterian Church. Serving as pallbearers will be Gary "Butch" Warncke, Jesse Roy Hart, Dale Dyess, Hon. Dwight Peschel, Arturo Volpe, Tom Trost, Atlee Fritz, and Ken Reininger. Serving as honorary pallbearers will be Mark Lorenz, Thomas Perryman, and Jay Scott Pennington. In lieu of flowers memorial contributions may be made to the Seguin Outdoor Learning Center, PO Box 851, Seguin, TX 78156 and the Guadalupe County Humane Society, P. O. Box 1593, Seguin, TX 78155-1593.