Francine Lombard Laband, and her husband Walter, founded and established
an endowment for the Laband Art Gallery in 1984. Over the past
twenty-five years, up until her death in January 2010, Francine
supported the gallery, making its rich programming possible. She also
contributed to the fund that created Thomas P. Kelly Jr. Art Gallery in
2008 which further enhanced the cultural life of Loyola Marymount
University. She was also a member of the CFA Council, the Clavigerii
Society at the University, and was a Presidential Associate.
Born Francine Georgette Lombard, she was the fourth daughter in a family
of six girls who grew up in Versailles, France. She studied at the
Sorbonne in Paris and later became a MASH unit nurse for the Allied
drive into Germany. Following the war, she married Walter Laband, a
British Army Intelligence Officer serving in Versailles. Eventually,
they relocated to the San Gabriel Valley in Covina, California. Francine
was a generous patron of the arts as well as a donor to charities and
schools. In recognition of her generosity over many years, Francine was
knighted a Dame of Malta, a Dame of the Holy Sepulcher, and a Dame of
St. Gregory by the Vatican. Her late husband was a Knight Commander of
St. Gregory, a Knight of Malta, and a regent at Immaculate Heart
College.
Francine G. Laband died peacefully at her home in West Covina on January
4, 2010, surrounded by her loving family. We will remember Francine’s
intelligence, her passion for the arts, her generous spirit, her love of
France, her steadfast support of and interest in young students, and
her elegant and kind manner. We greatly benefited from her insight and
critiques. She will be sorely missed by those who knew and loved her. Read her memoriam here.