To be loved,
be loving.
And so she was;
and so we did.
On Saturday, October 27, 2018, Rosemary Linder Hauge left us to find adventure beyond this world. She had run out of both effective and bearable treatments for her metastatic breast cancer of four years. Her partner and their families were present to say, “Goodbye, I love you” and wish her well on her journey. While she is now out of reach of our touch, her spirit fills our hearts and directs our lives.
Rosie’s life was enriched by her family and many friends and by her adventures, career and community volunteerism.
Rosie raised three children, of whom she was immensely proud, and was delighted in her five grandchildren. There was music, art, school, gardening, cooking, sports, girlfriends, boyfriends, college, adventuring, travel and marriage. She was so pleased that they all lived in Boulder so that she could immerse herself in their daily lives.
She had a successful career in marketing, becoming an executive marketing manager at Pillsbury, and leading the way for the next generation of women in business. As an entrepreneur with a love of the Caribbean Islands, she also spearheaded a salt-less spice and seasoning company.
In her younger years, Rosie enjoyed racing sailboats on the Columbia River with her sister, Patsy, and in later years, they would happily spend hours on the phone nearly every Sunday night.
Rosie enjoyed a wide circle of friends doing many activities, including skiing, hiking and studying petroglyphs in Utah, visiting the Denver Art Museum, trading hosting dinners, sailing, gardening, painting, playing bridge, attending book clubs and much more. Some of these friends she had known since childhood from spending summers at her family’s cabin in the Minnesota Northwoods.
Rosie and her life partner, Herb, met and joined each other late in their lives to their everlasting benefit. They skied the Colorado mountains, rode horses between the “white villages” of mountainous Andalucía, sailed throughout the British Virgin Islands with friends, went on a horseback safari in Kenya, and competed in the equine sport of endurance riding. Most importantly, they shared life every day.
Rosie “adopted” Herb’s children and grandchildren and was humbled by their admiration and love for her. In return, the grandchildren adopted “Mimi” as their grandmother, their own having died before they were born.
Rosie served on the board of the Colorado Music Festival and was active in Boulder Newcomers and Greenwood Wildlife Rehabilitation Center. She also volunteered at The Carousel of Happiness in Nederland, writing a book with cartoonist George Blevins to raise money for its success. Rosie also served on the board of the Nederland Community Library Foundation to ensure residents had a new library.
Rosie would be honored if you made a donation in her name to the Nederland Carousel of Happiness or the Nederland Community Library. If you were to do so online on Colorado Gives Day (Tuesday, December 4), those charities would receive a proportion of $1,000,000. Visit https://www.coloradogives.org/cogivesday and note that you can schedule your donation in advance.
Above all, Rosie would be tickled if you were to display a single rose in your home in remembrance of her.
(Originally published in the November 22, 2018, print edition of The Mountain-Ear.)
