Roza Tunigold

In the late forties and early fifties Roza worked around her parents farm, but in 1954 she met her husband Joseph to whom she married six months later. In 1955 they had their first son John, unfortunately they couldn’t stay in their beloved homeland because in 1956, Roza was forced to leave Hungary with her husband and 1 year old due to the Russian invasion of Hungary, and landed at Camp Kilmer in New Jersey. They were then relocated to a farm in Parma, Idaho, where they were sponsored by Jim and Amy Hanson. After working on the farm for four years, they were able to learn enough English which helped them to move to Oxnard, CA.

After landing in Oxnard, Roza worked for a short while at Saint John’s hospital serving food in the cafeteria, but she soon found that child care was her greatest passion. She started a home daycare and worked tirelessly for almost 30 years caring for children, some of whom started at the daycare as babies, grew up and had children themselves who were in Roza’s care. Even to this day, some of the children she cared for have continued to stay in contact with her. Roza also belonged to the Young Ladies Institute (YLI) of Oxnard. After retirement Roza enjoyed tending to her garden and enjoying a little bit of quiet time.

Roza is survived by her son, John Tunigold of Ventura; son and daughter-in-law, Lester and Heather Tunigold of Ventura; grandchildren, Rebekah Tunigold of Lake Tahoe, Benjamin Oliver and Emerson Tunigold of Ventura; brother-in-law, Tibor Rosza of Camarillo; and numerous nieces and nephews in Hungary and the United States.

Roza was married for 58 years to Joseph Tunigold who preceded her in death on July 31, 2012. She is also preceded in death by her sister Zsucsi Berecz, brother Imre Nagy, sister-in-law Juliska Rosza and daughter-in-Law Diana Tunigold.

We would like to thank Ventura hospice care and Ventura Finest Living Guest home for providing wonderful care for our mother.

Roza welcomed many children into her home, now it’s time for God to welcome one of his own children into his home.

Funeral services will be held on Saturday, June 10, 2017, 10:00 A.M., at the Ted Mayr Funeral Home, 3150 Loma Vista road, Ventura, CA 93003. Burial will follow at Ivy Lawn Memorial Park, 5400 Valentine Road, Ventura.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations may be made to Grace Hungarian Reformed Church, 18858 Erwin Street, Tarzana, CA, 91355.

Arrangements under the direction of Ted Mayr Funeral Home, Ventura, CA.