Francis (Frank) Joseph Colella was born June 8, 1943 in New York City. He married Jane Ellen Muller from Ducor, CA, on June 5, 1971 at Saint Joan of Arc Church in New York City. They spent over 52 years loving and taking care of each other.  Together Frank & Jane Ellen had four children, Anthony (Tony) Francis Colella, Mary Alice Sterk, Ellen Elizabeth Norman, and Rose Therese Colella.   Frank was so proud of his entire family.

Frank attended Monsignor McClancy Memorial High School, followed by Fordham University, where he obtained his PhD in Economics. He talked fondly about his times growing up in New York City and spending summers at Lake Ronkonkoma on Long Island with his grandparents.  As a young man, he worked at The Plaza Hotel, Pace College and St. John's University.  The job he said was the most fun was working for the 1964-65 World's Fair with the Ford Motor Company.

His first major teaching position was at Saint Bonaventure University in Olean, New York, where he taught Economics & Finance from 1967 to 1977, and was the chair of the Economics Department for part of that time. He met Jane Ellen there, who was a Theology Instructor.  He then moved the family to Indianola, Iowa, where he taught at Simpson College from 1977 to 2009 as a Professor of Economics and Finance.  Frank chaired the Department of Management, Accounting and Economics for many years, and acted as the Division Head of Policy Studies. Throughout his career as an educator, he impacted numerous students' lives.  His door at Simpson was always open to counsel his students and advisees.  Over the years, many students reached out to share with him how much his encouragement, mentorship and wisdom made a difference to them, and often acted as a positive turning point in their lives.

Frank also acted as an expert witness in economic consulting from 1976 to 2009 with diverse law firms in and out of the state of Iowa. His great knowledge and understanding of the financial impact of different life events led to this work, especially in the area of forensic analysis.

Some of his most treasured times were spent playing with his kids, from backyard badminton to summer afternoons at Lake Ahquabi.  Frank spent countless hours teaching them sports and music, reading aloud to them, taking them on fun vacations, and attending their many events. He truly loved playing with his seven grandchildren and great-grandson.

The Catholic faith was a constant priority throughout Frank's life.  He was a member of Saint Thomas Aquinas in Indianola for 15 years and Saint Anthony Church in Des Moines for 30 years.  He sang in the choir in both parishes. His booming voice filled the church many a time.  He loved to solo the Exultet during the candle-lit Easter Vigil Mass.

Frank was also a member of many community organizations.  He was a member of the Knights of Columbus, where he and his son's Squire group would get up early to help make donuts for the rest of the family and parishioners to enjoy following Mass.  Frank and Jane Ellen were very active in the Warren County Right-to-Life group.  He was a member of the Noon Lions Club, where he sang songs and played his guitar for their annual shows.  His children remember him singing I'm In Love With A Big Blue Frog at one of their shows and begging him for months afterwards to sing it to them over and over.  Frank spent numerous hours enjoying golf and playing cards at the Indianola Country Club. He developed an amazing circle of very close friends at all of these places and was widely regarded as a smart, funny (loud!), and jolly man who loved to tell wonderful stories… with embellishments and exaggerations added!

His hobbies included playing guitar and singing, golf and gourmet cooking. After he retired, he built a book of around 900 hundred songs, and would sit nightly in his dining room playing guitar and singing for his wife, his children and guests, always with a cocktail close at hand. His friends and family remember him for his gregarious laugh and sense of humor, his kind wisdom, and his gorgeous baritone voice.

Frank is preceded in death by his father, Anthony Francis Colella, and his mother, Muriel Alice (Barbera) Colella.  He is survived by his wife, Jane Ellen (Muller) Colella, his children, Tony Colella of Oakland, CA, Mary Sterk (Darlo Jansen) of Dakota Dunes, SD, Ellen Norman (JD Norman) of Scituate, MA, and Rose Colella of Los Angeles, CA, as well as his grandchildren, Mace Long, Marena Sterk, Calvin Sterk, Tate Norman, Rafe Norman, Shae Norman, Nathan Colella, and great grandson, Trace Kitchin.

Francis Joseph Colella passed away Friday, May 10, 2024 at home at the age of 80.  A Funeral Mass will be held at 10:30 a.m. Friday, May 17, 2024 at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church in Indianola with burial following in the Indianola I.O.O.F. Memorial Gardens Cemetery.  Visitation will be held from 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday, May 16, 2024 at Overton Funeral Home in Indianola.  A Rosary will be recited at 7 p.m. at the funeral home.