Roslyn Struse

Celebration of Life Services were held at 2:00 p.m., Monday, January 5, 2009 at Reck Funeral Home in Miller with Rev. MaryAnn Sheldon officiating. Burial was in G.A.R. Cemetery, Miller.

Her life began on April 4th, 1928, in Ree Heights, SD, as Roslyn Rae Phinney, the 4th daughter and 5th child of Loyd and Ila (Blake) Phinney. She had eleven siblings. She was a spitfire from the gitgo. She was definitely a gal full of dreams and good intentions. Her father, Loyd, was the janitor of the Ree Heights School for nearly forty years. Whenever she could, Rose helped her father at the school, especially when he got older and needed it. She met her husband-to-be in grade school. Always a competitor, she excelled in basketball in high school. It was when basketball had only begun for girls in SD at the high school level.

On July 12th, 1946, she gave birth to her first son, Perry Jr. On July 7th, 1948, she bore her second son, Steven. Her third son, Terry, was born on January 12th, 1952. Soon after that, her husband was back in the army, where he spent the next 23 years. So, she learned to raise her children while moving all around the U.S. and even in Europe. Her second son, Steven, died in Europe in 1956. Being the intense family person that she was, she would never totally get over his death.

Her husband, Sarge, retired in 1975 and they moved back to Miller. She was tired of moving around and welcomed this change very much. With all of her kids gone from home, she had the time to get involved in local sporting activities. In her mid-fifties, she was enjoying softball with the lady’s league. She also was active for several years with bowling. Some people say she quit when she was no longer able to do it well, others say she quit because she felt bad for all the younger folks who could not beat her. In any case, she was a competitor to the end. She actually beat many family members just a few years back in bowling!!!

Rose loved gardening. She had a variety of flowers in her yard. She also tended a large vegetable garden every year right up to the end. If you ate at her house, she always served the vegetables she had put up in the fall. She preferred them over the store-bought kind. She also tended several apple trees. Her piddling in the garden provided tasty treats for her family and many friends over the years, to be sure.

Some of her other hobbies included collecting dolls, rings, coins and stamps. She gathered a vast assortment of antiques over the years as well. She always dreamed of creating a small museum to display all the things she and Sarge had collected during their travels. Sarge passed away in 1997. Rose spent her remaining years living in the house they owned in Miller. She lived alone but could always rely on a little help from her family and friends.

Rose spent every Memorial Day decorating family graves. She had voluntarily taken that duty and never left anyone out. She enjoyed making sure that everyone was remembered on that special day. She always told the story of her experience once while decorating her son’s grave. Her mother was with her at the time. She began brushing the grass away in the middle of his grave and her hand suddenly touched warm flesh there. It was a shocking experience and she was speechless for a few minutes until she realized she had put her hand in a bird’s nest. She always said those few minutes were one of the most intense emotional experiences of her life. She always relished family dinners. She always served a goose on Christmas and fried chicken on the 4th of July. Those were her family traditions. She took every opportunity to see family. She loved family! I’m sure that if she could, she would wish you all a HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! Each and every one of you. Not just family, but all of her friends as well. And everyone else…

She is survived by two sons; Perry (Maureen) Struse of Des Moines, IA ; Terry Struse of Miller; two grandchildren; three great grandchildren; three great-great grandchildren; one sister, Carolyn (Morris) Jacobsen of Sioux Falls, SD; two brothers, Brent (Patricia) Phinney of Sioux Falls, SD; Michael Phinney of Mitchell, SD.

Those who preceded her in death include; her Parents; her Husband; a son, Steven; three sisters, Kathryn McClenden, Evelyn Boldt, Marilyn Aymar; five brothers, Mason, James, Theron, Gene, Bayard.

Reck Funeral Home of Miller has been entrusted with Roslyn's arrangements.

MINISTER
Pastor MaryAnn Sheldon

HONORARY PALLBEARERS
Carolyn Jacobsen - sister
Brent Phinney - brother
Michael Phinney - brother
Maureen (Cameron) Struse - daughter-in-law
Steven Struse - grandson
Amanda Struse - granddaughter

MUSICIANS
Dave Blachford
Ron Blachford

SELECTIONS
"Swing Low"
"The Rose"
"I'll Fly Away"