Rosemary Phillips Melcher

Rosemary P. Melcher, a British-American who was a longtime Denver resident and active part of the community, passed away on July 25 in Aurora. She is survived by her children, Sarah Frances Melcher of Torrington, CT and Albert Craig Melcher of London, England. Her husband of 67 years, Albert G. Melcher, passed away in December 2024.

Born Rosemary Anne Phillips on March 13, 1932 to Mollie Craig Phillips and Albert Henry Phillips, “Rosie” grew up in the English seaside town of Minehead, Somerset. She studied music, literature and other subjects at Ellerslie School for Girls before moving in her late teens to London.

In London she worked in radio production for the BBC and as a secretary in the U.S. Embassy, where she met “Bert” Melcher, an ensign in the U.S. Naval Civil Engineer Corps. The two were married in September 1956 and the next year moved to Boston MA, where she gave birth to Craig in 1958. Later that year they moved to Denver, Bert’s hometown, and Rosie learned about living and working in the U.S. In 1960 she had their second child, Sarah.

Professionally, Mrs. Melcher worked for a number of years in secretarial roles with Johns-Manville and Bank of Denver (secretary to the Chairman of the Board). That was followed by a series of volunteer roles – for Children’s Hospital, Denver Public Library, Reading for the Blind and Dyslexic, and Daughters of the British Empire.

She frequently attended classical music events but was also a fan of blue grass and country. She was a prolific gardener, passionate reader, adept tennis player, enthusiastic traveller and skilled knitter (in her last years, she knitted many scarves for charities).

In 2013 Bert and Rosie moved to St. Andrew’s Village in Aurora, where they enjoyed making new friends and continuing their cultural and civic interests, and where they lived the rest of their years.

Please make any in-memory donations to the Denver Botanical Gardens.