Obituary for Norma Frances Johnston Rose
Norma Frances Johnston Rose passed away peacefully in her Cayucos, CA home on May 15, 2012 with her loving husband Owen at her side holding her hand, their life together spanning over 60 years.
Norma was born in the Panama Canal Zone in 1926 to William and Natalia Johnston. She was the youngest of four siblings, all preceding her in death in their adulthood. As a child, she was a sports enthusiast in swimming, diving, acrobatics and tap dancing, later teaching the last two.
After graduating from Balboa High School, she attended Canal Zone Junior College where she also taught dancing, and orchestrated and performed in WWII USO shows on both the Atlantic and Pacific sides of Panama.
Deciding to further her education, Norma left the Canal Zone to enter San Jose State College for her teaching credential, resulting in a career of 32 years of teaching at Hester, Mayfair, Trace, Cambrian, Metzler and Bagby elementary schools in San Jose. In 1952, she met and married Owen Rose and had three boys: Michael, Scott, and Thomas, all born in a span of four years.
Norma and Owen retired to their home in Cayucos in 1990, becoming very active in local organizations and projects. One such project was Norma's commitment to a children's park. This energized her into more than a decade of activism on their behalf at County Park meetings. A site in Cayucos was designated as the Norma Rose Park in her honor.
Norma's family and teaching were the loves of her life, and even after retirement she continued to use her teaching skills and fluency in Spanish as a volunteer in local schools, as well as taking non-English speaking children under her wing, tutoring and guiding them educationally.
Besides her husband and sons, Norma is survived by her daughter-in-law Lorie Rose and grandchildren Andrew, Athena and Damon Rose. She was preceded in death by daughter-in-law Theresa Lazaneo-Rose.
Norma Frances Johnston Rose passed away peacefully in her Cayucos, CA home on May 15, 2012 with her loving husband Owen at her side holding her hand, their life together spanning over 60 years.
Norma was born in the Panama Canal Zone in 1926 to William and Natalia Johnston. She was the youngest of four siblings, all preceding her in death in their adulthood. As a child, she was a sports enthusiast in swimming, diving, acrobatics and tap dancing, later teaching the last two.
After graduating from Balboa High School, she attended Canal Zone Junior College where she also taught dancing, and orchestrated and performed in WWII USO shows on both the Atlantic and Pacific sides of Panama.
Deciding to further her education, Norma left the Canal Zone to enter San Jose State College for her teaching credential, resulting in a career of 32 years of teaching at Hester, Mayfair, Trace, Cambrian, Metzler and Bagby elementary schools in San Jose. In 1952, she met and married Owen Rose and had three boys: Michael, Scott, and Thomas, all born in a span of four years.
Norma and Owen retired to their home in Cayucos in 1990, becoming very active in local organizations and projects. One such project was Norma's commitment to a children's park. This energized her into more than a decade of activism on their behalf at County Park meetings. A site in Cayucos was designated as the Norma Rose Park in her honor.
Norma's family and teaching were the loves of her life, and even after retirement she continued to use her teaching skills and fluency in Spanish as a volunteer in local schools, as well as taking non-English speaking children under her wing, tutoring and guiding them educationally.
Besides her husband and sons, Norma is survived by her daughter-in-law Lorie Rose and grandchildren Andrew, Athena and Damon Rose. She was preceded in death by daughter-in-law Theresa Lazaneo-Rose.
Obituary for Norma Frances Johnston Rose
Norma Frances Johnston Rose passed away peacefully in her Cayucos, CA home on May 15, 2012 with her loving husband Owen at her side holding her hand, their life together spanning over 60 years.
Norma was born in the Panama Canal Zone in 1926 to William and Natalia Johnston. She was the youngest of four siblings, all preceding her in death in their adulthood. As a child, she was a sports enthusiast in swimming, diving, acrobatics and tap dancing, later teaching the last two.
After graduating from Balboa High School, she attended Canal Zone Junior College where she also taught dancing, and orchestrated and performed in WWII USO shows on both the Atlantic and Pacific sides of Panama.
Deciding to further her education, Norma left the Canal Zone to enter San Jose State College for her teaching credential, resulting in a career of 32 years of teaching at Hester, Mayfair, Trace, Cambrian, Metzler and Bagby elementary schools in San Jose. In 1952, she met and married Owen Rose and had three boys: Michael, Scott, and Thomas, all born in a span of four years.
Norma and Owen retired to their home in Cayucos in 1990, becoming very active in local organizations and projects. One such project was Norma's commitment to a children's park. This energized her into more than a decade of activism on their behalf at County Park meetings. A site in Cayucos was designated as the Norma Rose Park in her honor.
Norma's family and teaching were the loves of her life, and even after retirement she continued to use her teaching skills and fluency in Spanish as a volunteer in local schools, as well as taking non-English speaking children under her wing, tutoring and guiding them educationally.
Besides her husband and sons, Norma is survived by her daughter-in-law Lorie Rose and grandchildren Andrew, Athena and Damon Rose. She was preceded in death by daughter-in-law Theresa Lazaneo-Rose.
Norma Frances Johnston Rose passed away peacefully in her Cayucos, CA home on May 15, 2012 with her loving husband Owen at her side holding her hand, their life together spanning over 60 years.
Norma was born in the Panama Canal Zone in 1926 to William and Natalia Johnston. She was the youngest of four siblings, all preceding her in death in their adulthood. As a child, she was a sports enthusiast in swimming, diving, acrobatics and tap dancing, later teaching the last two.
After graduating from Balboa High School, she attended Canal Zone Junior College where she also taught dancing, and orchestrated and performed in WWII USO shows on both the Atlantic and Pacific sides of Panama.
Deciding to further her education, Norma left the Canal Zone to enter San Jose State College for her teaching credential, resulting in a career of 32 years of teaching at Hester, Mayfair, Trace, Cambrian, Metzler and Bagby elementary schools in San Jose. In 1952, she met and married Owen Rose and had three boys: Michael, Scott, and Thomas, all born in a span of four years.
Norma and Owen retired to their home in Cayucos in 1990, becoming very active in local organizations and projects. One such project was Norma's commitment to a children's park. This energized her into more than a decade of activism on their behalf at County Park meetings. A site in Cayucos was designated as the Norma Rose Park in her honor.
Norma's family and teaching were the loves of her life, and even after retirement she continued to use her teaching skills and fluency in Spanish as a volunteer in local schools, as well as taking non-English speaking children under her wing, tutoring and guiding them educationally.
Besides her husband and sons, Norma is survived by her daughter-in-law Lorie Rose and grandchildren Andrew, Athena and Damon Rose. She was preceded in death by daughter-in-law Theresa Lazaneo-Rose.
