Some of the newer Knights might not know Frank Hernandez; but those who have been around for some time will have a hard time forgetting Frank’s twinkly smile, his zingers and his sly pranks. Frank was a lovable, energetic Knight who contributed lots of his time to Knights of Columbus functions. Who can ever forget the opening tandem of Ed O’Brien, Bob Foster and Frank at the ballpark every Saturday morning? These three guys constantly and good naturedly gave each other a hard time with Frank often getting the best of it. Sadly Frank passed away on June 5, 2023 at the age of 86. Frank was a Mexican emigrant having been born on July 20, 1936 in Monterey, Mexico. He came to the United States for a better life and he has certainly provided that for his wife Rita (whom he married in 1959) and his three children. Frank accomplished this with a distinguished career with General Motors where he worked for thirty years. He designed and made new tooling for new model cars for General Motor cars manufactured in Arlington. He was in the production tooling department. He was a sharp cookie. There were a few occasions when Frank couldn’t work at the ballpark; and those times he spent with CERT (Citizens Emergency Response Team). He was also a member of Citizens on Patrol. And it is my understanding that he was a soccer referee and coach in his younger days. He also served as a Hospitality Minister for many years.
Frank is survived by his wife Rita and his children: Rita (Bill) Hernandez Heep, Ruth (Loren) Hernandez White and Francisco (Craig Burchfield), his grandchildren: Christopher (Pamela) Heep, Alyssa Heep (Aaron) Johnston, Brian White, and Elizabeth White, his great-grandchildren: Laila and Leo Heep, Sophia Gavin, Remi, and River Johnston, his brothers and sisters: Abigail Dominguez, Americo Hernandez, Oscar Hernandez, Artemio Hernandez, and Consuelo Jimenez.
Frank had a passion for travel, soccer, service to others, and loved to spoil his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Franks was a high character guy and will be missed by many in his family and community. He will most certainly be missed by the Knights of Columbus. Rest in Peace, Frank