Frances Gillum Walton set sail for the heavenly shores, surrounded by family, on February 9, 2024. She was born Frances Blanche Gillum on March 22, 1933, to the late Lindsay Mann Gillum and Elizabeth Wood Gillum Eubank here in Charlottesville, Virginia. In 1951 she graduated from Lane High School and went to work at National Bank and Trust as a Secretary and Statement teller until 1960. During this time, she attended evening classes at the University of Virginia sponsored by the American Institute of Banking. In 1974 she began working at Charlottesville High School as a Secretary where she worked for 24 years before retiring in 1998.

She was a member of the United Methodist Church and Adult Fellowship Class since a teenager, and continued attendance with her husband through adulthood. She became a member of the Beta Sigma Phi Sorority, Master Omega Chapter, in October 1953 and remained a prominent and active member for over 70 years.

She is preceded in death by her husband of sixty-four years, Vernon Emmett Walton, and her son, Kenneth William Walton, and her dear companions “Dusty” the Jack Russel, and “Ling-Ling” the Siamese. She is survived by her son, Lindsay Vernon Walton Sr. and his wife, Sandra Powers Walton; a grandson, Lindsay Vernon Walton Jr., and his wife, Jeanette Dabrowski Walton; a granddaughter, Heather Elaine Walton, and her husband, Grayson Tyler Smith; a brother-in-law, Donald L. Walton, and his wife, Peggy Taliaferro Walton; as well as all her nieces and nephews.

Her friends were many in Charlottesville, and she will be missed by all. She will be remembered for her joyful personality and her knack for storytelling.

For more on services and to share your condolences, visit Hill and Wood Funeral Services.