Rosemary Owens Weisbruch

Rosemary was born in Cleveland Ohio on January 31, 1934 to Rose (O’Connor) Owens and James “Jimmy” Neil Owens. She had one older sister, Margie, and two little brothers Neil and Terry. Her father passed away in 1938 from tuberculosis when she was only 4, leaving her mother to care for four little children all by herself. Rosemary recollects that her birth father was kind, gentle and funny. Following his passing, her mother’s parents Grandpa Hughey and Grandma Ellie O’Connor came to stay, and cared for the children while Rose went to work. Rosemary remembered that Grandpa Hughey had a beautiful Irish tenor voice, and used to sing to and with the kids, while Grandma Ellie was the disciplinarian.

Rosemary enjoyed her childhood in Cleveland and had many stories about riding the streetcars with her big sister Margie. For two cents they could go anywhere at all, and they loved going downtown, or even better, to Edgewater beach on Lake Erie. She was thrilled when she and her sister got twin beds and got to sleep in a bigger room than their brothers. And the girls adored climbing out their bedroom window to watch the stars from the porch roof.

Years later, when Rosemary was about 11 years old, her mother remarried William “Bill” Morrison, who adopted all of Rose’s children and became an integral part of their lives. Rose and Bill went on to spend over sixty years together and would begin each day by attending mass and recited the rosary at bedtime.

Being the dependent of a career Army serviceman, Rosemary spent many years traveling around to different bases in the United States and overseas. They spent a year in Japan when her Dad was stationed there, which included much of her senior year of high school. When they came back to the states she graduated from St. Francis de Sales High school in Riverside, California. She was so fond of her high school senior year photo, that was the one selected for her prayer card. Shortly after returning to the states from Japan, they moved to Texas where her Dad was stationed at Fort Sam Houston.

Her time spent in Texas nurtured her interest in Patty Page songs as well as Johnny Cash. Both would become her go-to artists of choice. She was always singing and taught us to sing along with her and to harmonize. She also had a grand sense of humor: One time she taught a bunch of us children and our friends to sing ‘The Yellow Rose of Texas,’ and told us it was the national anthem! We were all so proud to sing the national anthem…and the parents all thought it was hilarious.

Rosemary met her first husband, Lee Perkins, when she was living in San Antonio, Texas. They married in 1956 and had three children together. Over the next 25 years she would live in Texas, California, Oregon, Indiana, and Washington State. They bought a boat and spent weekends and summer vacations in the San Juan Islands, or exploring the far reaches of the Salish Sea, all the way up to Princess Louisa Inlet. They bought a mobile home and took it camping, fishing, and up to the mountains for ski weekends. Eventually she and Lee divorced, then annulled their marriage. In the meantime, she had developed a keen interest in adventure and became a travel agent, which led to a career with Northwest airlines. She started out at the reservations desk and soon became a gate agent, working in various airports around the United States, from Seattle, Washington, to Anchorage, Alaska, to Boston, Massachusetts, and many locations in between.

Rosemary remarried in 1992 to John D. “J.D.” Weisbruch, a Northwest airlines pilot based out of Detroit. They met when he flew into the Detroit airport where she was working at the time, and she was the one who opened the door to the jetway! Rosie and J.D. were married for 33 years and discovered a shared interest in traveling the United States in their recreational vehicle. Rosemary jokes that the Johnny Cash song “I’ve been everywhere,” was about her travels. This song so suits this adventurous lady that we all consider it her song. When not travelling in their RV, Rosemary and JD lived in Crystal Lake, Illinois, where they both enjoyed tending their woodland garden, and enjoyed many international trips to different regions of the world.

Rosemary was an energetic, vivacious, fun-loving, vibrant red-headed Irish woman who lived her life filled to the brim and spilling over with love and laughter. She enjoyed engaging in many different hobbies and interests, from quilting, to tole painting, to hand hooked wool rugs, she was constantly finding new ways to beautify her home and simultaneously spend some creative time with her family. She was a lifelong learner, researching topics of importance either to herself or anyone in her circle of acquaintance.

Rosie loved her family fiercely, and always put caring for her family above all else. If you needed help, or had something to celebrate, she would always be there to assist in any way she could. She was a dedicated mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, and was considered an honorary Mom or adopted Grandma by many friends’ children and her children’s friends. Her warmth, wisdom and kindness will be remembered by all who knew her. Their travels in the US included many, many visits to their grandchildren and great-grandchildren in Washington, Florida, Missouri, and Colorado.

Rosemary is survived by her loving husband, J.D. Weisbruch; and will be sadly missed by all her family: daughter Yvonne Perkins; daughter Kathleen Gillette (Kern); son Mark Perkins (Basilisa); stepson Rob Weisbruch; and stepson Scott Weisbruch (Maria). Her treasured grandchildren include Emily Brittin (Peter); Molly Gillette (Ernesto Ricks); Matthew Gillette (Sheena); Katrina Perkins-Escobar (Victor Escobar); Alejandro Perkins; Kate Perkins; Sarah Stendebach; Hannah Stendebach; and Delaney Weisbruch. Her beloved great-grandchildren: Colette Brittin; Bella Hesami; Rose Brittin; Noah Escobar; and Leo Escobar. She leaves behind a beautiful legacy of love and laughter, and we are so very thankful for the time we had with her.