Frances Pospisil Karney, born on a farm near Moore, Mont., on May 27, 1918, passed away in Lacey, Wash., on July 27 at the age of 103. Her husband Wesley Karney and her six brothers and sisters all preceded her. She is survived by her sons Ty Karney, of Olympia, and Bruce Karney (wife Twana), of Mountain View, Calif.
Frances moved to Washington after graduating from Moore High School and lived in several small communities here and in Montana before settling down in Olympia. She began working for the state unemployment office in 1942. She left that agency when her first son was born and returned to the Employment Security Department after her younger son started school. At that time in the late 1960s, Washington state’s pension rules ignored a woman’s prior years of service when she returned to state employment after having children. That unjust law was changed as a result of a single letter to a legislator written by Frances and her husband.
After her retirement, her greatest joy came from traveling. She took dozens of day trips by motor coach and many ocean cruises. In 1993 she visited Bohemia in the Czech Republic, the region from which her parents and grandparents emigrated in the 1880s.
She sold the family home on Percival Street in 2005 and moved to an assisted living apartment in Stillwaters Colonial Residence in Centralia, Wash. where she made many new friends. Declining health necessitated a move to the Panorama Convalescent and Rehabilitation Center in 2014. At her request, no memorial service will be held.
