Karen Louise Rossow, age 72, loving wife and mother, passed away Saturday, January 29, 2011 at Berlin Memorial Hospital from complications from primary biliary cirrhosis, a rare liver disease.
Karen was born October 12, 1938, in Faribault, Minnesota to the late Contance Vivian and Guy Otwell Karnes. She attended Brookings High School and later attended South Dakota State College earning a degree in Home Economics/Child Development in 1960. As a young women, she enjoyed ice skating and roller skating. She worked at the Purple Cow Drive-in serving as a roller skating waitress. She was a typical girl of the fifties with a poodle skirt and cat glasses.
She married Donavon Rossow on August 18, 1961 in Brookings, South Dakota. They moved to Stickney, South Dakota after Don accepted a teaching job in 1964. They later moved to Berlin in 1966, where Don was hired to teach high school math. They made Berlin their home for the last 42 years. In her first years in Berlin, she was a stay-at-home mom raising three children. She was always a hard worker and found time to lace shoes for Midwestern Sport Togs. She started working at the Berlin High School library in 1979 when her last child entered middle school. She enjoyed working with the students, faculty, and the staff, retiring in 2003. She was a member of Berlin United Methodist Church where she sang in the choir for over 40 years. She volunteered at the Berlin Memorial Hospital, the Senior Center, and spent time as a den mother. She dearly loved her parents, taking care of them in their later years as well as caring for Don's father. She was also a member of many civic groups such as Friends in Council, AAUW, and a literary club. Karen had a great voice and loved to sing. Throughout high school and college she was in many musicals and choral groups. It was during a college musical that she and Don met. She was a life long bridge player, loved to dance and of course, a Green Bay Packer fan. During their retirement, Karen and Don were able to travel more. They went to California and Hawaii a couple of times, as well as road trips to visit dear friends. She was a great cook and baker. She enjoyed time at the lake, Pete the cat, many, many friends, and spending time with her family. She especially enjoyed her granddaughters which were a special treat after raising three boys.
She was a dedicated wife, a wonderful loving mother, and a dear friend to many. She will be sadly missed by her husband, Don Rossow; her three children Dana (Kay) Rossow of Berlin, Dean Rossow and Doug Rossow, both of Oshkosh; three grandchildren, Sheilah, Lynette, and Kaitlyn; and a sister, Yvonne (Bill) Shuster of Cleveland, Ohio. She was preceded in death by her parents.
Funeral services were held on Saturday, February 12 at 11:00 a.m. at Untied Methodist Church in Berlin, the Rev. Aaron Alfred officiating. Arrangements have been entrusted to Barbola Funeral Chapel of Berlin.