Erika Rose

Erika was born in Linz, Austria, on October 27, 1930, to Norbert and Josefa Beham, nine years following the birth of her sister, Erna. At the time of Erika’s birth, the Beham family lived in Katzenau, a suburb of Linz, in a modest apartment equipped with a garden and a hut, where they kept a few chickens and goats. Although the Behams were of humble means, their small farm helped sustain the family during the Great Depression. During the worst years of the Depression, Norbert Beham lost his job as a skilled blacksmith, a position he had held since his apprenticeship in trade school. Without work to be found in his profession, he was forced to find any work he could to support the family. He would leave home for days at a time looking for odd jobs on local farms, for which he was typically paid with food, which he carried home in his rucksack. In 1935 Erika fell ill with scarlet fever, and she nearly died before being hospitalized for many weeks, eventually making a full recovery. Throughout the Depression, the family resided in Katzenau until the Nazi annexation of Austria in 1938, when Austria was incorporated into the Greater German Reich. Shortly following the annexation, the Behams moved to Cremeristrasse in Linz, where Erika lived with her family until she married in 1952.

From 1936 to 1944 Erika attended grammar school in Linz. During her school years, she witnessed the hardest period of the Depression, the annexation of her country, the start of World War II, and four years of hardship and deprivation during the war. Toward the end of the war, Linz became targeted by Allied forces for heavy bombing, particularly since Linz was the site of the Hermann Göring Werke, a Nazi-built steel mill, which produced the materials required to manufacture military equipment for the war effort. Erika had many fascinating stories to tell about her life in a war-torn country, including tales of a few near misses during the bombing raids.

After completing her mandatory eight years of grammar school, Erika attended trade school, where she apprenticed as a hairdresser. She began the three-year apprenticeship program at the age of 14, but she left the program shortly before graduation, as she felt unsuited to the profession. She then found a job at a radio factory, which she held for a short time, followed by a steady string of jobs working as a babysitter for American military families, which gave her an opportunity to improve her English language skills. By 1948 the Allies had already occupied Austria for three years following the end of the war. At the time, Linz was located within the American occupation zone following the Allied division of Austria into four zones (US, Russian, British and French). As an 18- year-old teenager, Erika had a very active social life with plenty of girlfriends to accompany her to the local Tänzehallen for music and dancing, which of course attracted the young American servicemen who were stationed in Linz. For the next few years, Erika continued to work and enjoy the vibrant social scene in town. One evening in 1950 Erika joined her girlfriends at the Theresian Café, a popular venue for music and dancing located along the banks of the Danube River. On this fateful evening Erika met her future husband, John Rose, a young GI who had been stationed in Linz with the US Army since 1946.

After a long courtship, Erika Beham and John William Rose were married in Linz on January 12, 1952. After the wedding the young couple moved to the US, where they were stationed at Fort Knox, Kentucky, from 1952 to 1954. During their tour of duty in Fort Knox, Erika and John had two children, a son, Michael Paul, and a daughter, Patricia Ann. In 1954 John was deployed to Korea, where he served during the post-Armistice period until 1955. While John was overseas, Erika and her two children moved to Holland, Michigan, where she could be near John’s close childhood friends, Paul and Lois Van Valkenburgh. In 1955 John and Erika were transferred to Sendai, Japan, where their daughter, Kathleen Marie, was born. In 1956 the couple was reposted to Fort Knox for a few years before John was deployed to Butzbach, Germany, in 1959. Ever the stalwart Army wife, Erika remained stateside with their three children for a brief period in New Jersey while John made arrangements for family housing in Germany. When military housing was secured for the family, Erika booked passage on a transatlantic passenger ship and sailed with her small brood to meet John in Butzbach. In 1963 Erika, John and their three children returned stateside, where John was stationed at Fort Hood, Texas. Three years later, John completed a tour of duty in Vietnam from 1966 to 1967, when Erika once again remained stateside with her three children in Killeen, Texas, holding down the fort on her own until her husband’s return. After John’s retirement from the Army in 1970, the couple moved from Fort Hood to Austin, Texas.

For the next fifteen years John worked for the State of Texas before retiring in 1986, while Erika devoted her time to caring for their disabled son. Mike was affected by the genetic disorder, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, and remained a lifelong dependent of his parents until his death in 1992. From 1993 to 2010, Erika and John pursued their passion for travel, exploring the world and visiting more than 70 countries on five continents before age slowed them down. In 2016 the couple moved to Buckner Villas at Greenridge, a senior living community in Austin. In May of 2018 John suffered a major stroke, enduring a difficult rehabilitation in a skilled nursing facility for the next four months. Erika visited him every day until his death on September 22, 2018, at the age of 92, and she was by his side for his final moments. They had been married for 66 years.

After John’s death, Erika remained at Buckner Villas, where she spent the next several years in a comfortable apartment with lots of friends to keep her company and social activities to enjoy during her widowhood. In July of 2024 Erika fell ill and began to receive care with St. David’s Hospice, which provided a wonderful team of health care professionals to assist her with end-of-life care. Her daughter, Kathy, and son-in-law, John, also took care of Erika during this period, while she was still able to manage independent living. In November Erika moved to a larger apartment at Buckner Villas with her daughter, Pat, and son-in-law, Dennis, as she now required more constant care. Three months later, on February 15, 2025, Erika passed away very early in the morning with Pat by her side.

Erika was a lovely, gracious woman with a radiant smile and a delightful spirit. She was often described by friends and strangers alike as beautiful, elegant and graceful. She made friends easily and formed many steadfast and loyal friendships throughout her life. Erika was firmly committed to her family. She was a wonderful mother to her three children, and she was especially devoted to caring for her disabled son, Mike, throughout the 40 years of his life. She enjoyed a happy marriage to John, and she was more than a match for his strong-willed character. She was a superb cook and an exceptional hausfrau, who was aptly suited to life as an Army wife, creating a beautiful and comfortable home no matter where her husband was deployed over the years. In addition to being well traveled, she loved to read about world history, and she always stayed informed about current events. While she could be outspoken and stubborn if the situation required, Erika was a kind and giving person, blessed with a positive outlook on life. She will be missed.

Erika Rose is survived by her daughters, Pat Rose and Kathy Rose, and her sons-in- law, Dennis Wallace and John Sebesta. She is preceded in death by her husband, John William Rose, her son, Michael Paul Rose, her sister, Erna Loew (née Beham), her brother-in-law, Heinz Loew, and her parents, Norbert and Josefa Beham.

A memorial service will be held at Arlington National Cemetery, where Erika’s urned remains, as well as those of her son, Michael, will be interred at the gravesite of her late husband, LTC John William Rose (retired).

Friends wishing to honor Erika’s memory are invited to give to their favorite charity in her name.