Frances (nee Runge) Kaffine was born in 1932 in Reading, PA and raised in Kenhorst. She graduated from Shillington High School in 1950, and from the Reading Hospital School of Nursing in 1953. Frances worked in the Accident Dispensary of the Reading Hospital prior to her marriage in 1955 to Helmut Kaffine. While her husband attended the Lutheran Theological Seminary, she worked at Chestnut Hill Hospital in Philadelphia.

Frances lived a life devoted to the service of others. During her years as a pastor's wife, first in Freemansburg and then in Bethlehem, she worked at St. Luke's Hospital and Muhlenberg Medical Center, where she is remembered for her competence and compassionate bedside manner. She also served as a Sunday School teacher and Stephen Minister while a member of St. Matthew's Lutheran Church.

For twenty-five years Frances and her husband volunteered for Meals on Wheels. She also served for twenty-five years as a volunteer at the New Bethany Meal Center.

She and her husband enjoyed camping, hiking, canoeing, and bicycling. Frances will be remembered as a loving wife, mother, sister, aunt, and friend, and for her generous hospitality and sunny disposition.

Frances was preceded in death by her husband of 68 years, Helmut H. Kaffine, and by her son, Karl, and her younger sister, Gayle. She is survived by her daughter, Karen K. Holm, and husband Robert Holm of Bend, OR, and by five nephews and one niece.

A Memorial Service will be held on November 18, 2026, at 11:00 AM at Blessed Trinity Lutheran Church at Rosemont, 1705 W. Broad Street, Bethlehem, where the family will receive relatives and friends from 10:00 AM until the time of service. Arrangements have been entrusted to the Cantelmi Long Funeral Home, Bethlehem.

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made in Frances's memory to her church, Blessed Trinity Lutheran Church at Rosemont, 1705 W. Broad Street, Bethlehem, PA 18018.