Rose Marion Bourdeau

Rose Marion Bourdeau, 83, died Feb. 27, 2014, of natural causes in her home surrounded by family.

A viewing is from 6 to 8 p.m., March 7 and a service will follow at 2 p.m., March 8 at Alaskan Heritage Memorial Chapel in Wasilla. A burial is planned in the spring at Ft. Richardson National Cemetery.

Rose was born in Philadelphia and grew up in Boulder City, Nev., after her father moved the family there to work on the Boulder Dam Construction Project. Later, the family relocated to Las Vegas, where Rose attended Las Vegas High School, and though she had dreams of higher education she sacrificed those dreams to the reality of helping her father and step-mother raise her siblings.

Rose was married to Eugene F. Bourdeau Sr. in June 1955, a U.S. Air Force Airmen stationed at Nellis Air Force Base. Together they went to Evereaux, France, and travelled extensively throughout Europe, eventually returning to the United States and several duty stations, including Texas, Nevada, Alaska and New Jersey. Following retirement, Rose and Eugene returned to Alaska to live out the remainder of their lives together. Along the way Rose taught her children to be as spirited, independent and kind-hearted as she was.

Rose was an adventurous and strong-willed woman, always quick with a laugh, exceptionally kind and ever willing to take risks and try new things. Rose placed her family above all other concerns, often doing without the things she wanted to ensure that her family had what it needed. Rose’s generosity knew no bounds and was equaled only by the sharpness of her tongue; Rose was never shy about speaking her mind.

Rose was an avid scrapbooker, and as the family historian would often use the books she built and the images they contained to tell her family all the colorful stories of our lineage. Rose was a conservative woman and a proud member of the National Rifle Association and the AARP, and late into her life she could be found in the Matanuska Valley Sportsman Shooting Range holding her own against any other shooter.

Rose was a remarkable woman, imbued with an untiring spirit and a strength of character that allowed her to live without regret. Stalwart in the face of adversity (a trait she picked up as a child of the Great Depression), Rose truly was the glue that held our family together, a matriarch in the truest sense.

Rose is survived by her two children, Eugene Bourdeau Jr. and Rena A. Hite; grandson, Adam Brabander and wife Nancy; great-grandchildren, David Brabander and Brittany Hunnings, and her husband Jacob; and the last great love of her life, great-great-grandaughter, Alyssa Rose Hunnings. Alyssa’s birth made us five generations strong, and Rose was exceptionally proud of the full measure of her family. Rose is also survived by her son-in-law, William Busbee of Wasilla; brother, Bill Handley of Mesa, Ariz.; and sister, Cindy Van Horn of Las Vegas, Nev.

“Mother, grandmother, wife, sister and so much more. We cannot tell you with a few simple words all of who Rose was. We can only tell you that we loved her, and that she will be missed,” her family wrote.