Rosetta Leora Fusselman's Obituary
Rosetta Leora Pierce was born on May 19, 1930 in Springville Utah to Pauline Bonneville Pierce. Monroe Siler Singleton was the only father she ever knew. She was deeply loyal to him but he never legally adopted her. She had two sisters, Pauline & Gaynelle, and two brothers, Monroe & Warren.She had a very difficult childhood. She was raised in many homes, by her mother, grandmother, and foster parents. After her mother had health issues she lived with her grandmother, Mary Esta Dewitt Pierce, from age 8 to about 12. Her grandmother did not want to give her up but was forced to do so due to her humble circumstances. Rosetta constantly ran away placing her into several different foster homes.At 16 she moved to Omaha Nebraska where she met Charles Dale Anderson, who was freshly home from serving during WWII in Belgium. They would marry and have two children, Michael Dale and Charles David. Michael was born in 1955 in Kansas, and David in 1958 in Colorado. They also lived in Texas and finally in Oklahoma as Charles followed construction of Dams and Highways as a diesel mechanic. They divorced in 1972 but were close friends later in life. Dale was constantly teasing Rose about “painting” her hair. Once she accidentally died it purple and Dale teased her relentlessly. After Dale’s passing in 2001 she often expressed her desire to change her name back to Anderson. Though she died Rosetta Leora Fusselman the family agrees that she would want her marker to read Rosetta Leora Anderson.Rose had many careers in life. She was a waitress, drove an 18-wheeler, worked in retail, was a bank teller and a bus driver. She was especially proud of going to truck driving school and hitting all of the continental states, her granddaughter Christina has all of the state spoons to prove it. Rose worked for many years in “Ladies Fashion” and was known for her dress. She was always predicting which styles would come back and she was usually right if she just waited long enough. Leopard print was a favorite of hers and she owned many leopard pieces. It is believed her feet were damaged from wearing pointy high heels while working retail and she had foot pain for the rest of her life. She was probably most upset by the fact that this meant she could no long wear pointy high heels.She also worked a second job at Carson Attractions in Tulsa Civic Center and the Fairgrounds pavilion in ticket sales. Her son Mike benefited with great tickets to many top music acts in the early 70’s. It was through Carson she made a lifelong friend in Shirley Kennedy.She later worked in a bank and finally at Broken Arrow Seniors as a bus driver and tour guide when she was 70+. She loaded up “old people” and took them on trips to Woolaroc and other museums, and Talihina to see the fall colors. She loved working with the seniors but never considered herself one. The Broken Arrow seniors is where she made another lifelong friend in Kathleen Wilson.In a 5th grade interview found in Rose’s memoirs she was quoted as having said “I retired when I was 75 only because I had to, my health betrayed me.” She was always independent and hated when she could no longer work.Rose had a deep love for the mountains and her birth state of Utah. She drove alone to Utah several times from Oklahoma. Once she drove her white Cougar and for protection she used a cooler, a coat and a cowboy hat propped up in the passenger seat to look like a man she named Merle.She served in her church as a teacher, organization president, and was part of the singing mothers, a LDS Church choir. The choir of about 400 sang at the 1968 HemisFair in San Antonio and the family has an LP from the performanceAfter having a back-stimulator implant for pain, a heart attack, and many bouts of pneumonia and infections Rose went to live at Sequoyah Point Living Center in August of 2008. Her biggest complaint was not being able to drive. She is preceded in death by many friends and roommates made there where her life was saved many times by attentive, skilled staff at Sequoyah Point and her Doctor of many years Dr. Patton. Their care served her well for many years enabling her to see many births, graduations, and marriages in her later years.Much of her time at the center was spent writing “Her Life Story” in detail. In preparing this eulogy the family perused 5 large albums filled with personal remembrances, certificates, newspaper and magazine clippings that reminded her of times in her life. She kept every card she was ever given and wrote on the back of every picture she ever took. Her albums are full of her challenges and joys in much detail. Some would make you laugh and many would make you cry. In life, her family teased her about her meticulous record keeping but the albums she created will be cherished for generations to come.When Rose was in good health she loved to visit Mike & Sue’s to have dinner and play games with her family. She would often play checkers with her great granddaughter Tessa who held the advantage and would move pieces to purposely let Grandma Rose win. Rose never noticed.Rose served others and worried over them her whole life, sometimes exasperating her son. Even at 62 when he visited she would remind him to wear his coat and to get plenty of rest. Her family took great fun in teasing her about their own well-being. In her memory books she had kept a card from her grandson Michael teasingly telling her he was starving and cold, as these were two of her greatest concerns.She always made sure that no one was slighted. If she gave a compliment to someone she made sure she gave an equal one to others present. She never forgot a birthday and always sent a card. In her drawers she had cards preaddressed for the birthdays coming over the next year. She had already signed a card for her youngest great grandaughter’s first birthday. She is currently 3 months old.She loved games, puzzles and “painting”. Her grandchildren remember having to teach her the rules of each game every time she played no matter how many times she had played before.Rose loved plants. Her home was always filled to the brim with plants of all kinds. She had a very green thumb and would often rescue plants from her daughter-in-law’s or clip the rosebushes at her granddaughter’s. Rose would say “You have to talk to them and tell them how pretty they are and rub their leaves”. Even in her small space at the center she had several very healthy plants. Mike felt her prompting him to go care for her plants shortly after her passing.Rosetta led many lives. Her first years were hard. She married young, raised 2 boys, worked in retail, sales, drove an 18-wheeler to every state, busloads of seniors, then watched over Sequoyah Pointe Residents and staff.She will be remembered as a woman who loved deeply, and as her granddaughter said at her passing, will be the feistiest guardian angel in heaven for family and those she cared about.Rose is preceded in death by her son David. She is survived by her sisters Pauline & Gaynelle, her brother Warren, her son Michael and his wife Susan, grandchildren Michael, Christina, Melanie and Hailey and 7 great grandchildren ranging from ages 3 months to 20 years old.She is now and will forever be greatly missed.Visitation will be 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM Thursday, December 21st, Floral Haven Heritage Mausoleum Chapel.Memorial Service will be 12:00 PM, Friday, December 22nd,The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Skiatook.
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