Another star is born
Well I just found out this morning that one of my "family members" passed away yesterday. Now I know most of you are thinking WOW for a girl who has so few biological relatives, she sure has a big family and it is true! My immediate biological family consists of me, my lil sis Patty, mother Mary, father Peter, aunt Ann, and two cousins Tim and Ned. My extended family includes my uncle Curt or as I like to call him "unk" (Curt and my mom are "siblings"), then I have my RI family with RI Mom, RI Dad, and my brother Mike, then there is my CT family with Dad and my two brothers Matt & David. I won't go into it now but if we start to count all the Godparents Patty & I have as aunts & uncles there's a whole slew of about 4 or 5 others to talk about. BUT, back to the point of this blog . . . This morning I got an email from Unk titled "My best friend" and to be completely honest I nearly deleted it before opening because it had an attachment & I worried it was one of those darn forwards which could have a virus in it, but for some reason this morning I decided to risk the chance at a virus & open it up. It was a noticed about his father passing away yesterday while Curt was with him. It made my eyes well up with tears, so I opened up the attachment to read the obituary:C. Arthur Rosenkranz, 96, of Rapid City, South Dakota and formerly of Ossining, New York , died at a local care facility in Rapid City on September 1, 2006.
Arthur was born in Cologne, Germany on June 2, 1910. Orphaned at age 8, he lived with various relatives in the Cologne area until 1926 when he was sponsored by an uncle and immigrated to the United States. At age 16 he attended New York Institute of Applied Agriculture at Farmingdale, Long Island, New York where he graduated with a degree in agriculture. He held many jobs in the New York City area barely surviving the depression. Arthur was united in marriage in 1935 to Mathilda Meta Murken. He held several farm manager positions from Connecticut to Pennsylvania. In 1944 the family moved near the village of Ossining, New York where Arthur managed a poultry farm on the Manheimer estate (Willow Haven Farm). Arthur bought the business in 1948 and continued to run it until August 1957. He then took a position with the Ossining school system as a custodian at which time the family moved into the village residing at 36 Eastern Avenue. In 1960 he accepted the position of head custodian for the new Ann Dorner Middle School, a position he held until his retirement in 1974.
Arthur become a Mason in 1948 joining Radium Lodge # 844 in Ossining. He was Master of that Lodge in 1966 and 1976, and retained his membership in the lodge until his death.
In 1978 Arthur and Mathilda moved to Rapid City, South Dakota to be close to their son and family. During retirement Arthur and Mathilda enjoyed traveling including several trips to Germany and Switzerland and many road trips back east to visit friends.
During his life he was a member of the civil defense as a volunteer firefighter and aircraft spotter (WWII), a Boy Scout leader, Mason and Shriner. In Rapid City he attended Knollwood Heights United Methodist Church.
Mathilda was diagnosed with Alzheimers in 1986, and Arthur was her primary caretaker for the next six years which allowed her a quality of life that would not have been possible otherwise. He will be remembered for the care, concern and helping hand that he gave to neighbors, friends and family even at an advanced age. He was his sonÂs best friend.
As I got to the last line, I started to cry. I remember visiting Art just a few years ago when we were out in South Dakota, what a man he was! He must have been about 3 years ago, making him 93 at the time, but you sure would never have known it! He was living on his own with many visits from Unk & Jean & neighbours. I remember we were about to leave & so I went over to say goodbye, as I leaned in to give him a hug, he squeezed my hand and said, "your beautiful" . . . I ask you, how often do you hear that from someone who isgenuinelyy sincere?
I'm gutted that I don't have any of my photos from my trip to SD, but I do have a few photos on my computer which I know he would like, so this sunset from Waubeeka lake at Camp Read & the view of Whiteface (thanks to PCS) arededicatedd to him today! (blogger won't let me put photos in at the moment, will keep trying) We're all going to miss you Art, especially your best friend Curt, my Unk!!
Unk, know that Dad & I are there with you in spirit, as we will not be able to get there in time for the funeral. I'm sure once Dad gets here on the 6th, we'll try to give you a ring. Sending you lots of love, hugs & kisses, your niece in London xxoo
posted by Sara @ 10:57 am
2 Comments:
I knew Arthur and Mathilda Rosencranz in Ossining NY. My father and Arthur were lodge brothers. He and his wife were warm, kind, honest people. I last spoke to Arthur shortly after my mother died in 2001. I regret losing touch with him. If you get this post, will you please give my sympathy to Curt, and tell him that I will always remember his father's smile, warmth and kindness. Thank you, Elsie Davis, Baltimore, MD
hi Elsie, I passed your words on to Curt & he said he would love to get back in touch with you but has lost your contact details, his email address is curtr@q.com
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