Frances S. Bomar

Frances S. Bomar, 78, died Sunday, September 20, at Hilton Head Hospital following a series of debilitating illnesses. She was born in Philadelphia, PA, the only child of William Ricardo Speranza and Olga Margaret Speranza. Her family moved to South Florida when she was a small child and she resided there with them until she became an adult. She graduated from Cardinal Gibbons High School in Fort Lauderdale and went on to earn a degree in broadcast journalism from the University of South Florida in Tampa.

Fran had a varied and successful career that spanned a wide range of communications areas. She gained a reputation as an entrepreneur who was unafraid to tackle daunting tasks and make them look easy. She was not hesitant to take the lead in school activities, business organizations, community groups and lobbying in Washington on behalf of charities in which she had a personal stake. 

While a student at USF, she quickly became involved with the school’s fledgling television station and created and hosted a popular interview show. Upon graduation she returned to South Florida to find it difficult to break into the broadcast industry. While working part time doing voice-over assignments she founded her own public relations firm. As her reputation began to grow, she was recruited to direct the public relations efforts at Parkway General Hospital, one of the largest and busiest hospitals in the area. It was while working there that she met fellow PR practitioner Ken Bomar. They quickly fell in love and their marriage continued until her passing. When opportunities opened up for them in Nashville, Tenn., the Miami Herald wrote that their decision to move created a void in the PR/publicity industry that would be hard to fill. 

Because of her background in the healthcare field, she was chosen to direct PR efforts for the Nashville Academy of Medicine, representing hundreds of doctors in the area. It was during this time that her interest in fitness and exercise began to blossom. She suffered from hereditary angioedema from birth and fought against it her entire life. As part of these efforts, she founded Fran’s Aerobics, the 1first such exercise organization in the area and the model for many that came after.

When her husband’s work necessitated a move to Alpharetta, GA, she quickly joined efforts to create a major YMCA in the area. She was a founding member and developed an aerobics program that then expanded into water aerobics. Because of her skills in this new area, she became a trainer and traveled across the country teaching and certifying water aerobics instructors at other YMCAs. Her multi-tasking skills came into play again when she and her husband decided to found a new PR/marketing company, Group 2 Communications, which went on to represent major organizations such as banks, hospitals, governments and related healthcare groups for nearly a decade. During this time the Atlanta Journal-Constitution included Fran on their list of “up and coming women” in the area.

When her health began to fail in 2021, she and her husband decided to retire and move to Latitude Margaritaville in Hardeeville SC near Hilton Head Island. While waiting for their home to be completed she began through the Internet to organize get-togethers with others who would be moving to the community. Because of this, she had made dozens of friends in this new area before even moving there. In recent years her poor health grew to a point to restrict movement so she once again utilized the Internet. She quickly gained a reputation for posting daily positive inspirational messages even as her health continued to fail. She did this up until her passing. 

Fran is survived by her husband, Kenneth Bomar, two children, Stephen Alan Bomar and Laura Elizabeth (Bomar) Barker, four grandchildren and four great grandchildren. The family asks that in lieu of flowers that donations be made to the Hereditary Angioedema Association, 10560 Main Street, Suite PS40, Fairfax City, VA 22030. A memorial service for Fran will be announced at a later date.