Francis was born in Czechoslovakia on Oct. 26, 1929.

He was brought to the United States as an infant and raised in Trenton, New Jersey. After graduating from high school at the age of 16, he enlisted in the Army Security Agency, where he served for four years at the Vint Hill Farms Station in Virginia, and in Asmara, Eritrea. Upon discharge, he spent six years in the Army reserves with the rank of a technical sergeant.

While serving in the reserves, Francis graduated Summa Cum Laude with a B.S. in biology from St. Vincent College in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. He earned his doctorate at the University of Pennsylvania Medical School before completing his residency at Presbyterian Hospital. As a student, he also met and married his first and only love, Anita Esposito, whom he affectionately referred to as “Neet.”

Having completed his residency and starting a family, Francis joined the Muhlenberg Hospital pathology department in Plainfield, New Jersey. He was associate director of the laboratory, director of the Department of Nuclear Medicine and the founder and director of the School of Cytology. He was also an associate professor of Pathology and founding pathologist of the Department of Pathology at Rutgers School of Medicine.

He moved with his wife and five children to Lake Placid in 1970, joining the pathology staff of several regional hospitals. He was president of the medical staff at Adirondack Medical Center and president of the Franklin County Medical Society. In gratitude, the Adirondack Health Laboratory was dedicated to him. He continued to practice forensic pathology for almost six decades, retiring at the age of 87.

Francis was a devout Catholic, a talented artist and avid tennis player. He served as a trustee of St. Agnes Parish, was on the Parish Council and was a lector and Eucharistic minister. He enjoyed water coloring and drawing and illustrated four children’s books for his much beloved grandchildren. He will be greatly missed by his family, many friends and the community of Lake Placid.

A Memorial Mass will be celebrated at 1 p.m. Saturday Aug. 17 at St. Agnes Church in Lake Placid. The Rev. John Yonkovig will officiate. The M. B. Clark, Inc., Funeral Home in Lake Placid is in charge of arrangements. Please visit www.mbclarkfuneralhome.com to share a memory or leave condolences for the Varga family.