Rose Marie Beaulieu passed peacefully on February 2, 2012, surrounded by loving friends and community members at Christina Lake, B.C. A memorial was held on Thursday, February 9, at the Christina Lake Community Hall. Rose was born on April 28, 1957, at Edmonton, Alberta, to Marguerite Rose Klugie.
Her biological father was a young Italian man, the son of an Italian restaurant owner. Due to the times and circumstances, it was decided that adoption would be the best way, and so from birth Rose was placed in an orphanage for children to await adoption. That happened three and one half years later, when two wonderful people appeared. Mary and Micheal Andruchow fell in love with Rose and took her home to be raised on their wheat and cattle farm near Lamont, Alberta. Rose enjoyed a happy life. Her school years passed in the Lamont area, and then at age 15, harder times came when her Dad died and she and her Mom had to sell the farm and moved into town. Rose got a cleaning job at the local hospital on weekends and holidays, and continued in high school. Growing up in a close-knit small town of 700, Rose was not told of her native heritage until after high school to avoid any discrimination.
She excelled at high jump, badminton, and enjoyed riding her bike around town with friends. In the winter, ice-skating, skidooing and all the things of small town life. Rose left home for Edmonton in her early 20's, beginning a life of work including managing hotel and motel businesses in Stettler and Pencticton. She loved the hospitality business. Later Rose became the energetic and accomplished house painter and decorator so many people in Christina Lake knew her as.
In 1998 she met her birth mother, Marguerite Klugie, and her siblings (many of whom were just meeting each other as well) - three brothers and three sisters. She developed her relationships with care, while living her life to the fullest! Her courage and energy and drive to heal her illness was legendary. She connected with her new found birth family, supported her friends and family here, worked on many jobs across the town, walked, talked, visited and built a life that she had longed for. A place to call home. A place full of people she trusted and loved. She found your community and this family in time to be cared for in a way she had never allowed others to care for her. We all know she would be the first to rise and work and lend a hand; it was now on her last bed that she said to friends and family ad to those who cared for her each day, thank you for caring for me, for carrying me to this glorious end of life. Her life ended in peace and joy.
Rose is predeceased by her adoptive mother Mary and father Michal, and her brother Patrick Fumo. She is survived by her life friend Joe Lindley and his daughters Natasha and Tamara, as well as Joe’s family and the innumerable Christina Lake friends who were family.
Thank you all, and thank you Ralph and Lucy Ackles, the Christina Lake Choir and everyone who made Roses memorial a celebration of a wonderful life lived. Rose asked for donations to area SPCA groups instead of flowers. Grand Forks Funeral Home had care of arrangements.