Rosalie “Roe” Bovos, 97, of Lenexa, Kansas, passed away peacefully on Sept. 17. She was loved dearly by all who knew her. She was surrounded by generations of family.
Early in life, she and her mother moved often and relied on the love and kindness of family in her younger days — a kindness and empathy that she would remember and live by all her life. When she was 10, she settled in Phoenix, Arizona, with her mother — a time, she said, when she was most happy as a child. Her mother, Martha, was her hero, and she idolized the strong woman who worked and sacrificed so much to take care of her and loved her so very much.
When she was 22, her best friend, Martha (she had good Marthas in her life), introduced her to her brother, Stanford, and as they say, it was love at first sight. The day after she met Stanford Bovos, he proposed to her, and they were married not long after in 1950.
She moved to Kansas City from Phoenix with her new husband and fell in love with her adoptive city, where she and Stanford raised their family and cultivated a wide, fun-loving circle of close dear friends. For many years, she and a large group of dear friends met every month for lunch get-togethers and to celebrate birthdays. Family and friends were synonymous, and for Roe, there was nothing more special and nothing she was more devoted to than her family and friends. She had a deep sense of compassion and love, and so many who remember her talk about how she treated them with such open kindness. Many thought of her like a second mother.
She and her beloved Stanford were married for 60 years until his passing in 2010.
Rosalie was a member of the Brandeis University National Women’s Committee and volunteered for many years in their annual book sale helping to raise funds for the university — a favorite annual event that she loved taking her grandchildren to.
She and Stanford also volunteered together at KU Medical Center for many years. She helped in the gift shop while Stanford volunteered reading to the children who were receiving treatments. They shared a deep sense of giving back to their community as they could.
Rosalie was preceded in death by her parents, Herman and Martha (Caplan) Neiberger; her husband, Stanford G. Bovos; and her son Mark H. Bovos.
She is survived by daughter, Marsha Deitchman of Dallas, Texas; daughter-in-law, Christine Bovos of Lenexa; grandchildren and spouses, Heather D. and James Biddle of Dallas; Lindsey and Dean Nickerson of Dallas; Nathan Bovos and Emily Schmidt of Kansas City, Missouri; Molly and Alex Gomes of Lenexa; nephew Gene Deutsch; nephew and spouse Harris and Anne Deutsch; and five great-granddaughters, Lane and Remi Odom of Dallas; Brooklyn and Kennedy Biddle of Dallas; and Sophia Gomes of Lenexa.
The family would like to thank Dell Weidner and the staff of Homestead of Lenexa for giving their grandma a caring and supportive home for the past few years and a place where they could always spend good times with their beloved grandmother.
For 97 years, Rosalie gave so much love to so many in this world. While the family misses her deeply, they are comforted knowing that there are so many who loved her, who have been waiting for their beautiful daughter, their darling wife, their loving mother, their dear friend, to be with them once more.
Graveside services were held on Sept. 19 at Rose Hill Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions are suggested to Village Shalom or The Temple, Congregation B’nai Jehudah.
Online condolences for the family may be left at louismemorialchapel.com.