Melissa “Missy” Potts Rosson

Missy Rosson, 86, Lawrence, died August 31, 2017, at home. She was born October 24, 1930, in Dallas, TX, graduated from the Hockaday School, Dallas, and attended two and a half years at the University of Texas at Austin. She dropped out of UT to marry, a marriage that lasted over 66 years until her death. She spent the first years of her marriage with her husband in the Air Force and later in graduate school, and arrived in Lawrence with her family in the fall of 1957.  Not receiving a degree did not deter her education. She worked for a number of years as a rare books library assistant at Spencer Library, and in the KU Graduate School office. A dear friend wrote in his letter of condolence: “If there was anyone on the planet even remotely like Missy, I missed them on my way through my 70 years. She was unique. I am privileged to have known her and most relieved that I never got in trouble with her. I have faced many things in life, and I probably would have preferred to be on the bad side of a bear than on the bad side of Missy.”

She was preceded in death by her daughter, Diana Laird, and is survived by her husband Harold, two sons, Richard (Pacifica, CA) and Brian (Houston, TX) and her granddaughter Larissa Laird (Lawrence).

Her ashes will be scattered in Portage Lake, MI, where she had a lifetime of happy summers.

For those who wish, memorial contributions are suggested to be sent to Douglas County VNA, 200 Maine Street, Lawrence, KS 66044.