Rose Palazzolo, Wife, Mother, Grandmother, and Great Grandmother, left us to join her husband, two sons, and hundreds of family and friends that passed before her. A real life Wonder Woman, her strength was only matched by her enormous heart and love for her family and community.
A little on her life: Leaving her extended family in Michigan, Rose moved to California in 1958 with her husband Chris and five of her seven children, Joe, Angie, Barney, Chris Jr. and Robert. She adjusted well to her new life in San Diego by keeping herself busy by raising a big family and later adding two more children, Mary and John. Rose devoted herself to taking care of the needs of her son Barney, who had muscular dystrophy, and Chris Sr. who suffered back injuries and several heart attacks, eventually disabling him. As the years passed, she eventually lost her husband and her two sons, Barney and Joe. Each loss devastating her, but she found the strength to continue with life through her faith and the love and support of her family and friends. Her life was filled with adventures as she travelled to Italy where she enjoyed visiting Lourdes, Rome, as well as other cities, to Michigan to see her brother and family, to Texas to see her son Robert and daughter Mary and their families, to Las Vegas to see her grandson Robert and play the slots machines. She watched her family grow as more grandchildren and great grandchildren blessed her world. She was her happiest when she was together with her family.
Rose spent a lifetime in service of others. She was a Sheriff Senior Volunteer, Mrs. Spring Valley, and every year during Christmas and Easter she’d organize donations from local businesses to make gift baskets and stockings filled with food and supplies for people in need. She’d even deliver them dressed as Mrs. Claus. She would also go from business to business with that big smile of hers, collecting raffle donations for church functions. She was a master fundraiser and would donate her baked goods to church festivals in order to raise money. Her signature pastry was her famous Pineapple upside down cake which once brought in a $500 donation. Rose also belonged to charitable organizations such as, Catholic Daughters of America, Ladies of Columbus, the Italian Catholic Federation. She was dedicated and proud to be a part of these organizations in order to help her community and those in need. Rose loved to dress up as a clown and visit convalescent homes for the elderly as well as homes for mentally and physically disabled. She would gather up dozens of stuffed animals and go to each person, talk with them and hand them a toy. She gained so much enjoyment watching the smile on the faces of these kids making them so happy. Rose also gathered goodies in bags delivering them to the children afflicted with cancer at one of the summer camps. These are just a few examples of her generosity and decades of volunteer work.
She was also a devout Catholic and as a daily routine she’d sit quietly in the morning and at night, saying specific prayers for her family and friends. Rose learned the art of making Rosaries, which she loved to do. She made hundreds of various types and colors, including the special black rosary which are given to our service members and first responders. She would give them to anyone that would take one, Catholic or not, in order to share her love and faith.
If you spent a minute with Rose she left a lasting impression and for someone so short, you always knew she was in the room. She was funny, loud, quirky, quick-witted, tough as a rock, yet tender and caring. Made of that good Sicilian stock, her kitchen was her kingdom and everyone had a favorite dish she’d surprise you with when you visited her. You always left her home overfed and on a sugar high with a car trunk full of leftovers (not an exaggeration).
Few have achieved her expert level of love, hope, selflessness and generosity. We should hope to draw inspiration and strength from her and her examples. By trying to live by her values and helping to spread them as she did, we will keep her close to us. But one thing is for sure, this world will be a lot less colorful without our Rose.
Rose will be deeply missed by by her children, Angie (Gary), Christopher Jr., Robert (Denise), Mary (David) John (Annette) and Janet (Joseph-Deceased). Your grandchildren, Chris (Stephanie), Tony (Malia), Robert, Joey (Laura), Julie (Pete), Jared (Bryce), Rosie (Jesse), Theresa (Jeff), Christie, David (Marisa), Johnny (Ashley), Chet (Courtney), Camryn (Cameron), Courtney (Matt), Mike, Angie, Dominic, Damion, Clarissa (Will), Your great-grandchildren, Anthony, Logan, Zoey Rose, Owen, Dillon, Lucas, Salvatore, Eliana, Joseph, Evan, Finley, Piper, Arabella, Emily, Harper, Alexa, Jenna, Ava, Sabrina, Angelo, Jared Jr, Jayce, Hunter, Charolette, Frankie, Ava, all that know you.
