Frances Joyce Payne

Frances Joyce Payne was born on July 19, 1926 in Dubuque, Iowa to parents Frank John Kuhn, Jr. and Emelia Lena (Reuschel) Kuhn. She was the youngest child joining older brother Donald Kenneth and older sister Mary Jean. She was baptized on August 22, 1926 at St. Matthews Lutheran Church in Dubuque. Frances lived her early years in Dubuque, where many of her maternal relatives lived.

In 1931, a job transfer took the Kuhn family to Mason City. The Depression years brought financial hardships and many moves around Mason City for the family and many school changes for the children. Frances graduated from Mason City High School in 1944. She graduated from Mason City Junior College (NIACC) in 1946 and attended 3 quarters at the University of Northern Iowa teaching program in 1946 and 1947. While in high school, junior college, and for a while after her marriage, Fran worked at Lund Bakery (later called Ogilvy’s) in Mason City. She went on to teach 5th and 6th grades in Luverne, Iowa in 1946/47 and 2nd and 3rd graders in Rock Falls, IA in 1947/48.

In May, 1948, Fran married her high school sweetheart, Edgar Donald Payne, Jr. at Central Lutheran Church in Mason City, Iowa. Fran and Don made their home in Mason City initially and then moved to Spencer, Iowa in 1954, where Don was engaged in the building trade and the lumber business. To this marriage, four children were welcomed: Jonathan, Jennnifer, Thomas and Annissa. Throughout their marriage, Fran and Don lived in numerous houses that Don built in Mason City, Spencer and the Iowa Great Lakes region. After enjoying summers at cottages at the Lakes for many years, the family moved permanently from Spencer to West Lake Okoboji in 1977. In later years, they built a home on Lower Gar Lake. Fran was an active member of Bethany Lutheran Church in Spencer and later at First Lutheran Church and Harbor of Joy Lutheran Church in Milford. She was a voracious reader all of her life and volunteered for an adult literacy program. She played volleyball, golfed and water skied. She belonged to a bridge-playing group for over 60 years and played cribbage with Don every morning for decades. She quilted and cross-stitched and was a loyal letter writer to many friends and family for many years. She loved her time living at the Lakes and enjoyed relaxing on a dock in the sunshine whenever she could.

Fran passed away at St Luke Lutheran Home in Spencer on April 10, 2026. She was preceded in death by her parents, husband Don, sister Mary Jean Schmidt and brother Donald Kuhn. She is survived by her children Jon Payne (Peggy), Jenny Rindsig (Steve), Tom Payne and Annissa Payne; grandchildren Nicole (Nathan), Jamie, Courtney (Weston), Matthew (Danaise), Stephanie (Brad), Christopher, Kelby (Chris), Sebastian (Ayvah), Avery, and Genevieve; great-grandchildren Tate, Will, Braedyn, Ethan, Beckett, Adilynn, Carter, Cora, Aksel, Mila, Jaelynn, Isla and Kynzlie, many nieces, nephews and friends.

The family would like to thank all the wonderful staff at St Luke’s Nursing Home for the loving care they gave our mom. She was a stubborn lady with a “feisty” side in later years, and they cared for her deeply, nonetheless. We would also like to give special thanks to Fran’s niece, Julie Schmidt. We appreciate all the weekly visits and the loving care she gave our mom until the very end.

A celebration of Fran’s life will be held on July 19, 2026, on what would have been her 100th birthday.