Vergyle ‘Verge’ J Olsen Rose

November 8, 1928 — September 29, 2020

Our beloved mother, Vergyle (Verge) J Olsen Rose, 91, passed away on Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2020. She was born Nov. 8, 1928, in Frontier (Kemmerer), Wyoming to Margaret R Harris and Milton J Olsen.  She married Loye T Rose, Dec. 8, 1947, in the Logan, Utah LDS Temple. They were later divorced.  

Mom spent most of her early years in Logan, Utah. She had many childhood adventures with her older brother Del, and with her younger sister Darla. She attended Ellis Elementary School, Logan Middle School, and graduated from Logan High School. At Logan High she was voted by fellow students as having the best-looking legs, which was ironic because she was humble with strong moral values, and often self-conscious. While in school she met and made many lifelong friends, and also met her future husband. 

Mom was an open-minded person and loved to learn. As a young mother, she liked to bowl and participated in leagues with her team winning numerous tournaments even though she had little time for recreation. For 18 years Mom was an accomplished square dancer and traveled much of the intermountain west attending jamborees and festivals. She had a passion for life, loved animals and was determined to live as long as she could living life to the fullest. She struggled through arthritis from a young age, osteoporosis, a broken ankle, a broken hip, broken ribs and endured dialysis for 15 years amazing her doctors that she lived to the age of 91. Everyone that knew her loved her kindness, creativity, and her nonjudging disposition. 

After she married, Mom and Dad moved several times. They lived in Sun Valley, Idaho, Pocatello, Idaho, Ogden, Utah, Billings, Montana, Missoula, Montana, Stevensville, Montana, Provo Utah, and in her later years settled in Washington City, Utah. They also built and lived in a seasonal family cabin in Island Park, Idaho. As needed to make ends meet, Mom would work at a dry cleaner, as a Fuller Brush salesperson, salad bar manager at a hotel, and person in charge of cleaning at various hotels. She also was a foster mom for several youths.

Mom was very creative and sought perfection in everything that she did. She decorated each of her homes with love and ingenuity with limited means. She loved the holidays and always had warm and inviting decorations. She especially loved Christmas and each year had spectacular trees with decorations that she designed herself, and delicious food and goodies. She liked her sweets and particularly loved chocolate. As a talented seamstress, she sewed many of our clothes and items for her homes. She made her own stunning square dance dresses and shirts for Dad and unique Halloween costumes for all of us. She made quilts for her family and crocheted afghans for each of her children and grandkids. And especially, she designed and sewed both of her daughter’s wedding dresses.

Mom loved the outdoors and prepared us for many camping trips, which was no small task. Over the years we traveled to California, Oregon, Canada, had yearly trips to Yellowstone and weekly summer camping trips to numerous rivers around Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming. Upon retirement, Mom and Dad purchased a lot in Island Park, Idaho and built a humble cabin mostly from second-hand materials. This cabin was a tribute to mom’s resourcefulness and frugality. Everyone in the family, especially Mom and the grandkids, loved spending time in Island Park.

Everywhere we lived, Mom had beautiful flower gardens, and plentiful fruit and vegetable gardens. Because finances were often tight, she supplemented the family meals with vegetables and fruit from the garden year-round. She would also travel to Utah, each fall, to purchase fresh peaches and pears for bottling, which all of us loved. We remember tasty meals with homemade jam, raspberries, strawberries, peas and corn. She loved and took care of numerous animals: our dogs Jinx, Abby and Sheree, Sir Loin and T-Bone the cows, Valentine the pig, Merf the goose, and several other sheep, geese and a turkey.

After moving to Washington City, she had a home built with an apartment for her mother. She became involved in ceramics and attended ceramics classes at Dixie State University. With her arthritic hands, she created beautiful desert turtles, snails, horned toads along with busts, sconces for some local homes and nativity scenes. She became affectionally known as the “Turtle Lady” by fellow students who were many years younger than her, and by many locals who bought her creations. She also painted watercolors and created driftwood art and would enter some of her creations into the annual county fair earning several ribbons and awards. Creating all of these ceramic figures often helped support her financially. During this time, she loved taking a yearly trip with her sister, Darla, to Morro Bay, California. Mom was always close to her sister; they enjoyed helping and supporting one another and spending time together. 

Mom’s favorite color was pink, and she often wore pink lipstick or pink clothing. Some of her great-grandkids called her their “pink grandma.”  She was very competitive and loved to play card and board games with the grandkids. She enjoyed learning about and bargaining for Native American turquoise jewelry. She also was interested in geodes and rocks and passed this interest on to several of her grandchildren. Mom worked diligently to put together a wonderful, detailed family history and provided each of us a copy; a huge undertaking and all done before the ease of computer technology. Mom was a member in good standing in the LDS church and taught primary classes for many years.

She is survived by her children Gloria (Cliff) Steele, Leeds, Utah, Donette (Brent) Sorenson, Logan, Utah, and Lindsey (Susan) Rose, Overton, Nevada; her grandchildren Erik (Betsey) Williams, Astoria, Oregon, Christopher (Stevie) Williams, Troy, Missouri, Jocelyn (Ryan) Holmes, St Joseph, Missouri, Jonelle (Jason) Wilson, Hurricane, Utah, R Tyler Sorenson, Logan, Utah, Blake Sorenson, Logan, Utah, Brooke (Brad) Sorenson, Twin Falls, Idaho, Landon (Heather), Soda Springs, Idaho, Breanna (Kyler) Freeman, Overton, Nevada; her sister Darla (Jack) Williams, St George, Utah; 14 great-grandchildren, Hailee and Zachary Williams and Laina, Carly, and Christian Chadwell, Alissa and Logan Rose, Adin and Dilyn Williams, Henry and Ellen Holmes, and Paxton, Bexley, and Roxy Freeman; and one great, great-grandchild, Vivian Laws.

We appreciate all her caregivers at St George Rehabilitation Center and her many friends and neighbors that came to visit her. We want to especially thank Darla, and her late husband Jack Williams, for their unwavering support of Mom and our family through the years.  

Services will be private due to current circumstances. She will be interred at Washington City cemetery on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2010. The family will hold a Celebration of Life at a later date.

Arrangements are made under the direction of Spilsbury Mortuary, 110 S. Bluff St., St. George, Utah. Friends and family are invited to sign her online guestbook at www.spilsburymortuary.com

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