Shirley Ann Franz

Shirley Ann Franz (nee: Goetz) passed away peacefully on December 28, 2025, at the age of 91. Born in St. Louis, Missouri, on September 26, 1934, Shirley married her high-school sweetheart, Allan Arthur Franz, attending high school and college together.

Shirley graduated with honors from Washington University with a degree in Children's Literature Education, and had a lifelong love of reading, a passion she passed on to her three daughters and their children and grandchildren.

When Shirley wasn't reading at the home she shared with her husband Allan in Defiance, Missouri, she was often working on her beloved dollhouse miniatures, an interest sparked by her childhood fascination with houses, history, and architecture, or tending to her garden. In the late 1970s, Shirley co-founded Village Miniatures, owned a shop for many years, and was active in the St. Louis National Association of Miniatures (NAME). Some of her creations can be seen at the St. Louis Miniature Museum.

Shirley and Allan shared a love for nature and the outdoors. While they spent a lifetime in the St. Louis and St. Charles areas, they traveled frequently and extensively, visiting at least 70 countries worldwide. Shirley was the adventurous one, thriving on new experiences, and planning their trips down to the minute. She rode camels and elephants, walked with lion cubs, went llama trekking, and never shied away from sampling the local delicacies, whether it was fermented shark, jumping shrimp, or some kind of insect.

Shirley was preceded in death by her husband, Allan Arthur Franz, and a stillborn son, James Allan. She is survived by her three daughters, Jean (Bob) Ransom, Carol (Mark) Miller, and Trish (Don) Seabaugh; eight grandchildren, Meredith (Joseph) Dino, Matthew (Andrea) Ransom, Rebecca (Christopher) Munsterman, Brian (Felicia) Ransom, Joshua Dalton, Sarah (Thomas) Sandison, Jacob Dalton, and Alexander Ransom. Shirley was also the great-grandmother of Ruth Munsterman (Rebecca and Chris) and Delilah Dino (Meredith and Joseph),

A private graveside ceremony will be held Friday, January 2, at Oak Grove Cemetery in St. Louis. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association.