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Rose Mary Struble

December 5, 1934 - December 21, 2015
Kalamazoo, MI

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Visitation

Monday, December 28, 2015
10:00 AM to 11:00 AM EST
St. Mary's Catholic Church
939 Charlotte Avenue
Kalamazoo, MI 49048
(269) 342-0621

Service

Monday, December 28, 2015
11:00 AM EST
St. Mary's Catholic Church
939 Charlotte Avenue
Kalamazoo, MI 49048
(269) 342-0621

Following mass, food and fellowship will be shared in the Fr. Bart Hall.

Contributions


At the family's request memorial contributions are to be made to those listed below. Please forward payment directly to the memorial of your choice.

Loaves & Fishes
901 Portage Street
Kalamazoo, MI 49001
(269) 488-2617
Web Site

West Michigan Cancer Center
200 North Park Street
Kalamazoo, MI 49007
(269) 382-2500
Driving Directions
Web Site

Flowers


Below is the contact information for a florist recommended by the funeral home.

Ambati
1830 S. Westnedge
Kalamazoo, MI 49008
(269) 349-4961
Driving Directions
Web Site

Life Story / Obituary


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Ever dedicated to her faith, family, and church, Rose Mary Struble was also devoted to those who were fortunate to call her friend. She served in many capacities at church through the years and could always be counted on. With her nurturing spirit and love for teaching, Rose Mary helped educate many young people as a well loved teacher. She was in every sense a traditional woman who was set in her ways and a little stubborn at times, yet her love shone bright to those who knew her best.

Rose Mary was the daughter of Carlton and Rose Gilbo. Born on December 5, 1934 in Alpena, Michigan, she came into the world at a time when families struggled through the hardships of the Great Depression, and impending war overseas. People learned to find joy in the little things, like gathering around the radio or going to a picture show which was a welcome reprieve from everyday worries. Rose Mary was the third of four children in her family, and grew up alongside her siblings, James, Robert, and Joan. Her father worked for the railroad as a paymaster while her mother tended to their family at home as a homemaker.

Despite the oppression of the times, Rose Mary enjoyed a childhood typical of her generation. She played with neighborhood and school friends, and remained close to her sister. Faith played a vital role in Rose Mary’s upbringing. As a family they attended St. Mary Catholic Church where Rose Mary received each of her sacraments. Her brother, Robert went on to serve as an ordained priest. Rose Mary attended the area schools through the travesties of World War II before graduating from Alpena High School. She went on to further her education at Alpena Community College and received her teaching degree from Western Michigan University. However, falling in love and having a family soon took priority in Rose Mary’s life.

In 1954, Rose Mary married her sweetheart, Edward Vogelheim at St. Mary Church in Alpena where she was a lifetime member. For a time the young couple lived in California before relocating to the Kalamazoo, Michigan area. Her two daughters, Arlis Jane, born in 1956 and Karen, born in 1960, brought Rose Mary the greatest joy. She loved being a mother, and made a good home for Edward and their girls. Strict yet loving, there wasn’t anything Rose Mary wouldn’t do for those she loved. Family was important to Rose Mary, and she always loved having her family home for the Christmas holidays where numerous memories were made. Quite typical of Rose Mary, she always had a big spread of food to feed everyone. She especially liked baking and she made the most scrumptious cookies and pies.

To say that Rose Mary was set in her ways could be deemed as an understatement. With love, she gave her honest opinions about things, and with no bars held, she told it like it was. One of the many things to love about Rose Mary, she also taught her girls valuable lessons in life, and about the importance of having integrity and the value of hard work. No stranger to hard work, Rose Mary taught them the value of money and the hard work entailed to achieve it. When the girls were small, she and the girls worked in their raspberry patch and took the fruits of their labor to the local super market to sell. Rose Mary used this to teach her children how to manage money wisely.

Through the years Rose Mary and her family lived quite close to her sister, Joan. Their children were always back and forth at their homes, and as young mothers their relationship grew even deeper. She reveled in all of her nieces and nephews, and treated them each as if they were her own.

Beginning in 1963 and for the following 30 years, Rose Mary taught third grade at Green Meadow Elementary School in Comstock through the Comstock school district before retiring in 1994. Rose Mary enjoyed her work, especially since, in her words, her third graders were not too little to be baby’s and not too old to be too smart for their good!

Rose Mary’s church community continued to be a large part of her life. Through the years she served as a Eucharistic minister, a sacristan and for many years worked with the bingo committee at St. Mary. By the grace of God, it was Rose Mary’s faith that saw her through the death of her husband, Edward in 1976. Although trying, Rose Mary was able to move forward. She spent her free time enjoying crafts, and she was quite talented when it came to crocheting and knitting. She also came to enjoy playing the slots at Gun Lake Casino. Playing bridge and other card games always proved to be a good time for Rose Mary, too.

Joan Struble was a dear friend and co-teacher of Rose Mary’s. When Joan was battling cancer, Rose Mary helped take care of her. During this time she and Joan’s husband, Bob became acquainted, and after Joan’s death, they began dating. They were married on July 31, 1999 at St. Mary Catholic Church, and during the years they shared together they enjoyed traveling, particularly trips to Europe.

Faith and family are what mattered most to Rose Mary Struble. She gave of her time and talents, and through honesty and hard work, she set a fine example for her children to live by. She knew how to be stubborn, but in all ways, Rose Mary was a deeply loving and caring woman. For these things and so much more, she will be fondly missed and remembered.

Rose Mary Struble, age 81, of Kalamazoo died on Monday, December 21, 2015. Members of her family include two daughters: Arlis Jane (Greg) LaMaster and Karen (Mark) Peper, six grandchildren: Christopher (Sheila), Michael, Joseph, Andrew, Nicholas, and Ashley Rose, four great-grandchildren: Matthew, Cecilia, Michael, Elenora, two brothers: James Gilbo and Fr. Roberto Gilbo; nieces and nephews. Rose Mary was preceded in death by her sister, Joan Lamorandier and by her two husbands: Edward Vogelheim in 1976 and Robert Struble in 2014. A Memorial Mass will be held at 11:00 AM Monday, December 28th at St. Mary’s Catholic Church, 939 Charlotte Ave. Her family will receive friends at the church one hour prior to the Mass and at a luncheon in Fr. Bart Hall immediately following. Please visit Rose Mary’s personal memory page at www.lifestorynet.com where you can share a favorite memory or photo and sign her online guestbook. Memorial contributions may be made to Loaves and Fishes or to the West Michigan Cancer Center.

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