Frances Bourque, the founder of Old School Square and the woman considered the mother of the arts in Delray Beach and beyond, died Tuesday at the age of 84.
“Everybody is just heartbroken,” says Winnie Diggans Edwards, the executive director of the Delray Beach Historical Society. “She has always been the most beautiful person in the room, the most elegant person in the room, but also the smartest person in the room.”
Born in Belle Glade as one of six children, Bourque met her husband, Bob, in 1961 at a fraternity party at St. Louis University. They were married in her hometown in 1963 and raised their children in Delray Beach. Bob ran a successful OB/GYN practice (many adults in the city were probably delivered by him).
The couple was featured on the cover of Delray magazine in 2018 as a part of our telling of three local love stories; editor emeritus Marie Speed wrote, “Her southern drawl could melt ice cubes.”
A community activist and supporter of historic preservation, Bourque led the charge to rescue three historic school buildings (built in 1913 and 1925) that the Palm Beach County School Board had plans to close. She served on the board of the Delray Beach Historical Society from 1986 to 1991—as vice president from 1986 to 1988—and led a group of volunteers to conduct a feasibility study and then restore and resurrect the buildings as a vibrant community hub. This included lobbying in Tallahassee—alongside fellow Delray Beach visionary Roy Simon—for historic preservation and funding for the project. With community support, the Cornell Museum, Vintage Gymnasium and Crest Theatre were renovated and the Amphitheatre stage was built.
“She had the biggest preservationist heart of anyone I’ve ever met and she was just so deeply rooted here and cared so much about the projects that she worked on,” Diggans Edwards says.
She pointed to a keynote address that Bourque gave during the historical society’s Annual Meeting, a speech that people still talk about to this day. “She talked about everybody’s responsibility to help pitch in and preserve their town and it was very, very moving.”
For Laura Simon, the president of the DDA, Bourque was “a visionary leader.”
“Under her leadership, Old School Square became the centerpiece of Delray Beach’s revitalization,” Simon said in a statement. “What began as a neglected school complex grew into a cornerstone of community identity and cultural life. Borque’s legacy lives on in every performance, exhibition, and community gathering held within the restored Old School Square grounds.”
Holland Ryan, who served as COO of Old School Square, wrote on Facebook, “For over 20 years, I was privileged to stand alongside her, advancing her bold vision for Delray Beach and Old School Square…Frances didn’t just transform buildings—she ignited a cultural renaissance that changed all of us. I am deeply proud and eternally grateful to have been part of Frances’s journey.”
When the city unexpectedly ended its lease with Old School Square in 2021, Bourque never wavered in her advocacy, writing, “We have always been able to find a way forward. That’s the Delray way… Until now. We desperately want to reset the current sad course of events. We want to work out our differences so we can resume our mission which is and has always been serving the community.”
Her preservationist spirit expanded beyond Delray’s city limits. She was also involved in the Florida Department of State Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, Historic Palm Beach County Preservation Board, Florida Trust for Historic Preservation and Preservation Action, Washington D.C. She was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Greater Delray Beach Chamber of Commerce and the Carl Reinhardt Award from the Florida Trust for Historic Preservation, to name a few. Old School Square established a scholarship fund in Bourque’s name through the Community Foundation of Palm Beach and Martin Counties.
She survived pancreatic cancer in the early 2000s, which she said “made her look at life differently.”
“Frances Bourque’s unwavering dedication, love for the town and passionate leadership will continue to shape Delray Beach’s cultural landscape for generations to come,” said Simon.
