Frances Balinskas Wolos

Frances “Francie” Balinskas Wolos, 71, of Westfield, Indiana, passed away on September 1, 2025. She was born on June 24, 1954, in Tripoli, Libya, to the late Albin and Frances Balinskas. As a toddler, she moved to Asmara, Ethiopia (now Eritrea) before coming back to the US.

Francie grew up in Massena, New York, on the Canadian border, where she developed a love of the water, and an intense dislike of the cold.

She received her medical technology degree from Onondaga Community College and a BS from Empire State University.

While working in the blood bank at Upstate Medical Center in Syracuse Francie met her future husband, Jeff, who was pursuing a Ph.D. in Immunology. Jeff’s career caused them to move a lot, first to Philadelphia, where son Alex was born, then to Cincinnati, where Bryan and Nathaniel were born. Subsequently, the family moved to New Jersey, then finally, in 2002, to Indiana, where Francie lived in Carmel before recently downsizing to a home in Westfield.

Francie’s joy was her children. Summers were spent on the St. Lawrence River with grandparents and family. She traveled a bit, but the best memories were swimming, boating, and fishing at the family’s camp.

Francie was an active knitter. She belonged to two groups, a weekly knitting dinner at McAlister’s, and a monthly pub knitting group. No one in the family was ever without scarves, socks, hats, mittens, or sweaters.

Francie belonged to St. Christopher’s Episcopal Church. She served on the vestry, made prayer shawls, and was involved with starting St. Christopher’s Crops, an outreach program growing vegetables for distribution at nearby food pantries.

Francie was always cheerful, in spite of many health issues. She was diagnosed with terminal metastatic lung cancer in her mid-30s, but survived multiple surgeries and significant side effects from the medications for another 35 years. She never complained about the restrictions her disease had on her life, and got to watch her children grow into fine young men.

Francie is survived by her husband, Jeff, and her three boys, Alexander Wolos, Bryan Wolos, and Nathaniel Wolos, as well as siblings Judith (Servick), James Balinskas, and Richard Balinskas.

There will be a Celebration of Francie’s Life on October 3rd, at 1:30 pm at St. Christopher’s Episcopal Church, 1402 W Main St, Carmel, IN 46032.

In lieu of flowers, please make a donation in Francie’s memory to the American Cancer Society, American Diabetes Association, or the Lewy Body Dementia Association.