Rita Franks

Visitation for Rita A. Franks, age 62, will be held at Frederik Meijer Gardens, at 9:30 AM Saturday, January 26, 2019, with a Memorial Service to follow at 10:30 AM. Rev. Mary Spalding will officiate. Mrs. Franks was born December 31, 1956 in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and died January 13, 2019 in Ruston, Louisiana. Rita was the daughter, the fifth child of eight children, of Albert Dominic Spalding, from Lebanon, Kentucky, and Mary Barbara Jastifer, from Parnel, Michigan. She was raised in Wyoming, Michigan, and was a member of Saint John Vianney Church. Mrs. Franks received a B.S. Degree from the Western Michigan University, in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and Masters of Library and Information Science from Wayne State University, in Detroit, Michigan. She was employed for 25 years at Waldo Library, at Western Michigan University where she held numerous positions. She was employed by Louisiana Tech University beginning as the Government Documents and Reference Librarian, then serving as the Director of Collection Services, then in 2013 she assumed leadership of the Library to become the Executive Director of Library Services. Rita was an active member with the Louisiana Library Association, and the American Library Association. Rita served Louisiana Tech University as the SACSCOC Compliance Certification Compliance Committee since 2013 and as a member of the University Senate, APC, and Faculty-Staff Club. Previously in Michigan she had been active in the Boy Scouts of America, and was a member of the Order of the Arrow. She was preceded in death by her parents, and is survived by her husband, Michael Franks; a daughter Michelle Vardaman (Jamey) of Summerdale, Alabama; a daughter Melissa Franks of Summerdale, Alabama; a son Lucas Franks of Cleveland, Ohio; a son Vincent Franks of Cleveland, Ohio; a granddaughter Shelby Cantrell of Summerdale, Alabama; two brothers, five sisters, and many nieces and nephews. Memorials may be made to LA TECH UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION and mailed to: Director of Libraries, Prescott Memorial Library, P.O. Box 10408, Ruston, LA 71272. Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.kilpatrickfuneralhomes.com