Graveside Service For Educator, Coach Francis 'Frank' Barron Set

BRANFORD, CT — In November 2019, Francis E. "Frank" Barron's close friend Jim May created a GoFundMe for Barron, the beloved educator and coach who touched countless lives in his years teaching English and journalism and as a lacrosse and football coach at Daniel Hand High School in Madison. Retiring from Hand in 2013, he'd go on to become a championship-winning lacrosse coach at Branford High School. A founding member of Branford Youth Lacrosse, in 2018 he was inducted into the Branford Sports Hall of Fame as a "truly respected player, coach, and humanitarian."

The fundraiser May created was to help Barron and his family as he bravely battled pancreatic cancer.

Read the full 2019 Patch story with video and memories from colleagues, students, athletes and community members here.

Barron passed away around eight months later, on July 18, 2020, in Connecticut Hospice of pancreatic cancer. He was 69.

Now, a graveside service is set for Saturday at 11 a.m. in Branford Center Cemetery.

Here is Barron's obituary from W. S. Clancy Memorial Funeral Home:

Francis E. “Frank” Barron of Branford died Saturday July 18, 2020 at Connecticut Hospice in Branford, from Pancreatic Cancer. He was the beloved husband of Rebecca Sharp Barron.Frank was born in New Haven on August 10, 1950 son of the late Francis K. and Evelyn Kebabian Barron.

He was an English and Journalism teacher at Daniel Hand High School in Madison for many years until retiring in 2013. He also coached football and lacrosse at Hand, before coaching lacrosse at Branford High School. Frank was a founding member of Branford Youth Lacrosse.

Besides his wife, Frank is survived by his son Greg Barron and his wife Melanie Rice of Farmington.

A graveside service will be held on Saturday August 21, 2021 at 11:00 in Branford Center Cemetery.

Donations in Frank’s memory can be made to CT HS Lacrosse Coaches Association, 2 Bay Path Way, Branford, CT 06405-2629.

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