Frances (Thompson) Lipscomb

Cynthia Frances Thompson Lipscomb, a cherished mother, sister, aunt, and friend, passed away peacefully on February 25, 2026, at the age of 95.

Born in Wilkinson County, Georgia, on April 21, 1930, to Earnest and Alice Thigpen Thompson, Frances spent her childhood in the St. Marks, Florida area with her two younger sisters, Dorothy “Dot” and Earnestine “Teen.” She attended Georgia Teachers College (now Georgia Southern University), where she met her husband, Richard Channing “Dick” Lipscomb. They made their home in Savannah, Georgia. Around 1967 they bought a home on a tidal creek on Talahi Island where they would stay almost 50 years. Frances taught in the Savannah public school system for over 30 years.

Strong-willed and adventurous, Frances never backed down from a challenge. In the early 1970s, she bought a motorcycle and rode it to work—much to the delight of her students. She loved the water and spent countless days exploring Savannah’s waterways in a small skiff. She built a kayak from a kit in her living room, rigged a sail, and taught nieces and nephews to sail. An avid birdwatcher, she was rarely without her binoculars and field guides.

She loved camping—first on the barrier islands near Savannah, later in the Smoky Mountains, and eventually on a solo trip up the East Coast into Canada. Afflicted with a terminal case of wanderlust, she set out in the early 1980s and never really stopped, traveling widely across the United States and Canada and abroad to Central America, the Caribbean, China, Cambodia, Africa, and Israel. She became a certified SCUBA diver in her mid-50s and continued diving well into her 80s. Her love of motorcycles never faded; later in life, she logged thousands of miles on her trike. She was a faithful member of, and Deaconess in, The Church of God, a Worldwide Association, and her creekfront home in Savannah was a longtime gathering place for church socials and cookouts.

In 2014, she moved to Youngstown, Florida, to be near her only child, Richard Channing “Chan” Lipscomb, and his wife, Lana. From her home overlooking Deer Point Lake, she enjoyed trading books with her neighbor May, tending her plants, caring for her aquarium, and looking after a small herd of feral cats. She lived there independently until the time of her passing.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Richard Channing “Dick” Lipscomb, and her sister, Dorothy Thompson Harville. She is survived by her son, Richard Channing “Chan” Lipscomb, his wife Lana, her sister Earnestine, and many beloved nieces and nephews.

A memorial service to celebrate her life will be held at 11AM on March 7, 2026, at Salem Methodist Church, 1812 Salem Church Road, Toomsboro, GA 31090, where many generations of her family are buried.

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