Rhoda C. Roscoe's Obituary
Rhoda Caroline Roscoe was born February 1, 1927 to Francis Goehring and Ruth Ames in Dickey, North Dakota.
Perry Eugene Roscoe was born April 19, 1924 to Lewis Roscoe and Clara Millspaugh in Dickey, North Dakota.
Rhoda and Perry both came from large families in the small farming town of Dickey, and for a time the two families were close neighbors. Perry and Rhoda married October 3, 1944, and left North Dakota November 3, 1944 to make a new home in Washington where Perry was to be employed by the Puget Sound Naval Yard in Bremerton. Their first home was in Port Orchard, WA. When the war ended in 1945 Perry’s job in the shipyard ended. Warren was born that November. After a short stint in a garage, Perry found work in Tacoma with the Northern Pacific railroad at the roundhouse. Rhoda and Perry bought their first home in Parkland in November 1946 and their second son David was born in 1947. After 12 years of working for the railroad, a reduction in forces caused Perry’s job to end again. He then went to work for Boeing in Seattle, where he spent the next 29 years as an electronics technician.
Janice was born in 1952 and Paul in 1956. Soon after, Perry built the family’s home in Parkland, WA. He was helped by his father Lewis Roscoe and Rhoda’s father Francis Goehring, who had both traveled from North Dakota for the task. When Paul entered kindergarten Rhoda began substituting in the school lunch program in the Franklin Pierce School District. A year later she became the cook at Brookdale Elementary and continued there until an opening occurred in the office for a health clerk. She filled that position for the next 20 years.
In 1978 Perry and Rhoda moved to Milton, WA, where they lived for 20 years. Both retired in 1987. They enjoyed camping, gardening, working in their yard and visiting with family and friends in distant places. They traveled in their motor home and by plane. In 1998, Rhoda and Perry moved to Olalla, WA to live beside Janice and Scott. In late 1998 Rhoda’s vision was greatly diminished by the affects of Graves Disease, and while she had some vision, she was legally blind for the rest of her life.
While in Olalla Rhoda and Perry sculpted a beautiful yard and vegetable garden, complete with grape arbor built by son Warren. Rhoda’s gorgeous bank of purple heather was in full bloom at the time of her passing. Perry spent hours tilling and tending the vegetable garden. His huge mound of rhubarb ended up in countless crisps and pies, favorites of all the family. The yard was a beautiful backdrop for family picnics, barbecues, and even camp-outs.
Perry was a tinkerer, and was frequently out in the garage fixing or building one thing or another, or working on cars. Janice fondly recalls that when she was a child, she thought there was nothing her father couldn’t fix. She remembers how he was never too busy when she took him a broken toy or doll, and how he’d say “well, let’s take it out to the tool bench and see what we can do.” Warren, David, and Paul all inherited this trait from their father.
Rhoda perfected the art of holiday dinners, and has passed on traditions that are treasured by all of the family. Her crescent rolls are famous and unrivaled, and were snatched up as quickly as they came out of the oven, requiring strategies such as timing and hiding to ensure enough would survive until dinner.
Rhoda and Perry created rich experiences and memories for their children through lots of camping trips and travels. There were frequent huge family reunions in North Dakota, where laughter, storytelling, and music spilled across the prairie. Rhoda and Perry established friendships that have lasted a lifetime. The family has many fond memories of Rhoda and her dear friend Emily chatting and laughing while standing at the sink for hours cleaning bucketfuls of razor clams, only to turn immediately to the stove to fry mounding platterfuls for the eager hoard of kids.
Rhoda and Perry were dearly loved by their children and adored by their grandchildren and great-grandchildren. They set many examples that we hope will be carried on for generations, including what it means to be a family, and unconditional love.
A Funeral Service celebrating the life of Rhoda will be held 1:00 PM Sunday, March 19, 2017 in the Celebration of Life Center building Aspen Chapel at Mountain View Funeral Home and Memorial Park. Interment and a reception will immediately follow.
Please share your memories of Rhoda and condolences to the family by visiting the tribute wall.
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