Frances A. "Fran" Salamone

Frances A. “Fran” (Armenti) Salamone passed away peacefully, surrounded by her loving family, on Tuesday June 27, 2023, at Einstein Medical Center-Montgomery in East Norriton, PA. She was 85. Fran was married to the late Joseph M. Salamone, who passed away in 2019. She was a retired bank Vice-President for Royal Bank of PA., from 1964-2003.

Fran was born on July 8, 1937, in Bridgeport, PA., to the late Angelo and Adele (Tavani) Armenti Sr. Fran is survived by her sister, Christine A Piazza; and her brother, Angelo Armenti Jr. (Barbara); many nieces and nephews; and many other loving family members and friends.

Family and friends are invited to Fran’s Viewing at Sacred Heart Church, 120 Jefferson St. Bridgeport, PA., on Saturday, July 1, 2023, from 9-10:20 am, followed by her Funeral Mass at 10:30 am. Interment will be held at St. Patrick Cemetery, located in Norristown Pa., 19401.

Memorial contributions can be made to The American Cancer Society at donate3.cancer.org.

Arrangements are by The Bacchi Funeral Home & Crematory, Ltd., Bridgeport, PA

Condolences to the family can be made at www.bacchifh.com.

A letter from Fran's brother, Angelo Armenti:

Frances A. Salamone Passed Away at 1:49 AM on Tuesday, June 27, 2023

Christine and I met with the daytime doctor at Einstein Hospital at 12:30 PM on Monday, June 26, 2023,

to discuss a sudden decline in Frances’ medical condition that was observed the night before at

Brightview. Christine and the Nursing Staff at Brightview noticed that Frances didn’t look right, wasn’t

responding normally, and was also coughing and finding it hard to breathe. A day or two before, Frances

had complained of a sore throat, trouble breathing, and a possible fever. The Nurses said that if she

didn’t improve by the next morning, they would send her to Einstein Hospital to receive additional help.

In fact, they sent Frances to Einstein Hospital by ambulance on Monday morning June 26, where she was

evaluated and given numerous tests to assess her condition.

When Christine and I met with the daytime doctor in Frances’ hospital room, we noticed that she had a

very noisy and powerful breathing mask on her face that was forcing oxygen into her lungs while

expelling carbon dioxide. They explained that without the mask, Frances would not make it to the next

morning. They said they would keep the mask on to give time for her relatives and friends to have a last

chance for a brief visit with Frances on Monday afternoon and early evening. We called family members

and friends and gave them an invitation to visit, and many were able to do so. Others, unable to visit that

day, called to ask if they could say something to Frances on the phone, realizing that while she could

probably hear―according to the doctor―she would not be able to speak. In four or five cases, I put

callers on speaker of my cell phone and held it to Frances’ ear as they told her they loved her and were

thankful for all the help she had given them throughout the years. It was both beautiful and emotional.

After all the other family members and friends had left the hospital, Christine, Barbara, and I met with

the nighttime doctor to talk about Frances’ Living Will, that spelled out what Frances wanted and did not

want in case she became incapacitated. For example, she did not want her life to be prolonged by

artificial means. At previous hospitalizations, she wore a DNR (Do Not Resuscitate) band on her wrist.

The doctor told us that if they had not put the breathing mask on her face that Monday morning, she

would not have made it to lunchtime. She also told us that the breathing mask was, in fact, not aligned

with Frances’ Living Will, which essentially called for “comfort care,” rather than “efforts to prolong life

artificially.” They applied the mask only to give nearby family and friends one last opportunity to visit

Frances. At around 9:00 PM last night, Christine, Barbara, and I had a very emotional discussion in front

of the doctor as to what Frances would have wanted us to do, and agreed that, knowing Frances, we

already knew what she wanted us to do, i.e., be faithful to her wishes. At that point, we gave the doctor

our permission to remove the mask that Frances herself had been trying to take off all day. We got home

at 10:00 PM Monday night.

My cell phone rang (only four rings) at 2:01 AM on Tuesday morning (today) and because my phone was

charging in the bathroom, it had stopped ringing before I could pick up. It was from Einstein Hospital, so I

called back on the same number but could not reach the person who had called me. I dressed and drove

to Einstein Hospital and went to the Emergency Room to inquire about Frances. After about 30 minutes,

a hospital guard escorted me to Room 3062 and walked away leaving me alone. A curtain was blocking

the view of the bed. I walked around it and saw that Frances was finally at peace after a lifetime of brutal

challenges. She looked like an Angel lying there. Frances was a person of Faith. She was always amazing,

smart, loving, forgiving, and courageous. She never complained. She never quit. She loved people and

tried to see the best in everybody she met. Everyone who knew Frances in life will miss her dearly.