A visitation for Rosa Gleeson will be Sunday, February 18, 2024 from 3:00PM-5:00PM at Rumsey-Yost Funeral Home. A private family graveside will take place at a later time.
Rosa L. “Sug” Gleeson died on February 16, 2024, after a long battle with Dementia. Sug, her nickname from birth, was born in August 1930 to Alpha L. Rowland and Eva L. (Pool) Rowland in Milburn, Oklahoma. She was raised on the family ranch in a two-bedroom house along with three sisters and four brothers. Two siblings died in infancy.
As a child and adolescent, Sug learned the value of hard work by picking cotton, milking cows, driving the hay truck, harvesting peanuts, and plowing fields. At a grand height of not quite 5’0” she played basketball for Milburn High School. She carried that competitive work ethic throughout her life and could work most of us under the table until she was well into her 80’s.
After moving to Liberal, Kansas to live with one of her sisters, Sug met and married Pat Gleeson. Sug never worked outside of the home after Mark was born until Nancy left home to attend college. She did, however, work tirelessly in the home cooking, gardening, canning, doing laundry, attending sporting and music events, and entertaining friends everywhere they lived.
She is preceded in death by husband Pat, her parents, and 8 siblings. She is survived by her sister, Mattie Lou Cooper (Oklahoma); children Nancy (Joe) Scanlan (Sebastian, Florida), and Mark (Mary-Nell) Gleeson; grandson Benjamin (Kate) Gleeson and great granddaughter Louise Gleeson (Lawrence, Kansas); and grandson Samuel (Megan) Gleeson (Lawrence, Kansas). Sug always considered herself fortunate to have had loving relationship with her many in-laws, nieces, and nephews, and with longtime friends from the Kansas City area and around the country.
Sug’s life lessons: Get together often with family and friends. Eat well. Drink good wine. Get an education. Work hard. Never accept the first offer, and never hesitate to return an item, even if it’s wall-to-wall carpet or a car, if you are just not satisfied.
Sug will be buried next to her beloved husband, Pat, in a private ceremony.
In lieu of flowers, the family welcomes gifts to Pioneer Ridge Assisted Living in care of Rumsey-Yost Funeral Home. These gifts will be used to support the compassionate and dedicated Pioneer Ridge personnel who are pursuing advanced degrees and certifications. The care she received at Pioneer Ridge Assisted Living contributed greatly to the quality of Sug’s life and to her family’s comfort and peace of mind.
