Rosalie Skidmore Wilcox

Rosalie ‘Rosie’ Margaret Wilcox passed peacefully on Tuesday, January 26, 2016. She was a selfless individual whose passion was serving the Lord and others. She was born to Dr. & Mrs. Louis V. Skidmore in Lincoln, Nebraska on May 4, 1925. With both parents being professors at the University of Nebraska (Lincoln) her loyalty to the the Nebraska Huskers was unwavering. In her early years she studied dance, was an avid reader, enjoyed writing and loved to sing. She graduated from Northeast High in Lincoln and attended Stephen’s College in Missouri and the University of Nebraska where she graduated with a degree in Art History.

In December 1947, she married Robert ‘Bob’ Wilcox and they shared 60 wonderful years. Rosie and Bob lived in several cities as they started their life together including Ruston, LA, Tulsa, OK and Midland, TX. In the early 1960’s Bob and Rosie settled in Houston were they spent the remainder of their years. Both were founding members of Memorial Drive Christian Church in Houston, Texas. Rosie was active in the church’s choir for over 45 years. Music was a large part of Rosie’s life and she continued to sing with the “Singing Belles” and a gospel group at local area nursing homes and other events lifting the spirits of those around her with her joy for music. Rosie had a true talent for written correspondence and kept in touch via written personal notes with numerous friends, including those from her very earliest childhood days. She took pride in her association with the Chi Omega Fraternity and continued to stay close to several of her sisters through the years.

Rosie gave her time to a multitude of charitable organizations. She volunteered at MAM (Memorial Assistance Ministries), knitted several hundred sweaters for children through the Knit for Kids program and created quilted lap robs and baby blankets for those that were in need.

She was never without a smile and was always the first to reach out to new faces and welcome them warmly. Rosie’s life was filled with the love of family and friends. It was truly a life well lived.

She is loved by her son Lou and his wife Tracy, and Lou's daughters, Leslie and Holly; her daughter Valerie Criswell and her daughters, SGT Jennifer Williams, Taylor Criswell, Amanda Furr and her husband Brian with their children Aislinn Rose and Aiden.

In lieu of flowers the family ask that donations be made to MAM (Memorial Assistant Ministries) Office of Resource Development, 1625 Blalock Rd, Houston, TX 77080