Memorials › Rose Marie Frances “Ricky” Polak Rosenberger

Rose Marie Frances “Ricky” Polak Rosenberger

25 Feb 1934 – 6 Jun 2024

Birth	25 Feb 1934
Death	6 Jun 2024
Cemetery	Fairmount Cemetery Denver , City and County of Denver , Colorado , USA
Added by	SM on 18 Nov 2024
FaG	https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/271372511

Bio

Rose Marie Frances Rosenberger, nurse, quilter and beloved wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, died after a long struggle with dementia and aphasia. She was 90. Rose Marie may have been short in stature, but her larger than life smile more than filled every room she was in. She cherished the simpler things in life, like pink roses, a fresh tomato, sharing stories about her childhood, kissing her sons on the cheek to leave a lipstick mark and giggling with her grandkids about anything and everything. Throughout the years, she was known for her colorful wardrobe, countless rings on her fingers, and the funky chain she wore on her glasses. She often made her own clothes or used embroidery and appliques to create a truly one of a kind look. Rose Marie was born to Ivan and Frances Polak on Hermsen's Farm outside of David City, Nebraska. The youngest of six children, she often ran around with her brother, Leo, and the neighborhood boys. Her tomboy-ish nature as a child earned her the nickname Ricky, a name she carried for the rest of her life. Life on the farm was never simple, but most problems were fixed over a cafeteria-sized bowl of popcorn. After graduating from Notre Dame Academy in Omaha, Ricky left Nebraska to study nursing at Briar Cliff University in Sioux City, Iowa. She later moved to Denver, became a registered nurse, and earned a Master's in Nursing and Child Psychology. While working as a nurse for Health and Human Services in Denver, Ricky met her husband, Denny. The couple later welcomed their two sons, Kevin and Todd. After her sons were born, Ricky left her job at Rose Memorial Hospital and became a school nurse with the Denver Public School District so she could spend more time with her boys. She could always be found in the bleachers at her sons' swimming lessons, hands ever busy sewing something new. Ricky often took them back to Nebraska for reunions and family visits, stacking the cousins "like cordwood" as they said, all over the floor of their grandmother's house. Ricky found her bliss in quilting. She made hundreds of quilts, always by hand, sometimes even making her own patterns. She made a quilt that looked like the tilework at the Vatican and another that was an exact copy of a stained glass window in a church in Aurora. Her quilting was prolific and most quilts were carefully examined and historically documented by the Colorado Quilting Council. In her retirement, she focused on tending to her roses, chasing the squirrels away from her tomato plants, and embroidering while watching her favorite soap operas. When her grandkids came to visit, she always took them out for ice cream and taught them how to play Gin Rummy. When they were away, she sent care packages of homemade cookies to sustain them until the next visit. She believed in service to others, joining the Red Hat Society in Denver, donating materials to schools and the Arapahoe County Quilters Guild, and sending giant boxes filled with supplies to missions in Honduras and Chile. Her sister, Sister Joan, a nun with the Notre Dame Convent in Omaha, would often call upon Ricky to help the older nuns finish crafting projects, or to create small works they could sell to raise funds for the convent. Ricky was a social butterfly. She would constantly check in on family, friends and neighbors, chatting for hours at a time. Even when the aphasia hit her and Ricky couldn't speak well, she was content so long as she sat in silence with those closest to her. Her absence leaves an incredible void in this world as no amount of love in the world could match that which you found in Ricky's smile. Yet her family can't help but grin with the knowledge that her siblings were waiting for her at the pearly gates with a large bowl of fresh, buttery popcorn. Rose Marie is predeceased by her parents, Ivan and Frances Polak, along with her stepfather, Fred Kriz, and siblings Georgia Sirigusa, Dolores Cimino, Richard Polak, Sister Joan Polak, and Leo Polak. She is survived by her husband, Dennis; sons Kevin and Todd; grandchildren Christopher, Kelli, Madeline, Lindsay, and Max; great-grandchildren Clara and Calder; and numerous nieces and nephews.

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