Rose Mary Foster
June 5, 1923 - July 17, 2018
Obituary
Rose Mary Foster was born on June 5, 1923 in Seattle, Washington. She was the first child of Nancy Saltarelli-Branze and Julius Branze. She is sister to Eleanor, Joe, Babe and Lawrence and they grew up in the South Park neighborhood of Seattle. Her family raised vegetables and had farm animals to help feed this large family, including her grandparents, during the depression.
She attended St. Mary’s grade school and Franklin High School. As a child, Rose was athletic and she liked to play sports. After high school Rose worked a variety of odd jobs. During World War II, she worked as a machinist assembling the wings of the B-17 aircraft. She was an original “Rosie the Riveter”.
Rose loved to dance. On Christmas Eve 1943, she and her friend Lucille went dancing at a USO dance at the Trianon Ballroom in downtown Seattle. That evening she met a handsome sailor, named Harry, from Connecticut. They were married July 1, 1944 in Chicago at St. Peter & Paul Church in a small ceremony. They were blessed to celebrate 70 years together.
After Harry was discharged from the service, they settled down to raise their children, Dianne and later Harry in the south end of Seattle, in an Italian neighborhood and they ended up living next door to Rose’s mother, Nancy on Day Street. They attended Our Lady of Mount Virgin Parish and their children attended school there.
In 1969, Rose and Harry moved to Burien with their youngest child Marion. They attended St. Francis of Assisi Parish. Rose had a generous heart and volunteered many years at St. Francis, helping in the school library and serving hot lunches to students. At church, she was a member of the Ladies Sodality and helped with various events.
Rose was an amazing cook. She would bake wonderful cakes with fluffy frosting and yummy Italian cookies. She was known for spaghetti and meatballs with homemade sauce. Rose was an avid gardener. She tended to her many flowers and the huge vegetable garden in the backyard. She enjoyed knitting and crocheting and made beautiful blankets.
After Harry retired in 1982, he and Rose wanted to travel. They enjoyed their retirement by taking bus trips with the Burien Senior Center on day outings or flying with “Let’s Go Travel” to fun destinations like Las Vegas and Reno.
Rose was soft spoken and quiet. She did not like to be the center of attention. She was a devoted wife and mother. Rose was very devout in her Catholic faith and she prayed daily for all of us. She was sweet, kind and thoughtful of others. Everyone who met her loved her.
