Rosa Lee “Rosie” Turpin, of Atchison, Kansas, beloved wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother during her 90 years of life, passed away peacefully on June 12, 2023.
Rosie was born on April 28, 1933, in Effingham, Kansas, daughter of George and Katharine (Schneider) Regan. She attended St. Joseph’s Grade School and graduated from Mount St. Scholastica Academy in 1951.
At the age of 14, she met a handsome neighbor boy who would later become her husband. She and Donald Turpin were married on July 5, 1952 at Keesler Air Force Base, in Biloxi, Mississippi. They celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary last summer.
Rosie spent much of her adult life raising children and grandchildren. She also worked as a bus driver for Benedictine College throughout the 1970’s, transporting students back and forth from north to south campus. In 1978, she became a chauffeur for the Sisters of Mount St. Scholastica. She worked for them for 33 years, until her retirement in 2011. Rosie loved her job, and became close friends with many of the Sisters. After her retirement, she and Don spent the next 9 years as full-time babysitters for some of their great-grandchildren.
In her younger years, Rosie enjoyed playing and coaching softball. She coached all of her daughters as members of the Turpin’s Tornadoes. She took pride in working hard throughout her life. This was especially evident in the way she took care of her home and yard, mowing it herself until she was almost 80. She will be remembered for her sense of humor, her stubbornness and the never-ending love that she gave to her family.
Rosie is preceded in death by her parents; brother, Bob Regan; sisters, Mary Ellen Matthews, Kathleen Badger, Eileen Graves, and Marjorie Willming. She was also preceded in death by her son-in-law, Michael Coulter; grandson Tim Phillips and great-grandson Jayden Langan.
Left to cherish her memory include her husband, Don Turpin; children: Mike (Tracey) Turpin, Chris (Melissa) Turpin, Kathy Phillips, Sherry Coulter, Vicki Bennett, Pam (Mike) Andre, Tracie Turpin; twenty-two grandchildren, thirty-eight great grandchildren and numerous nieces and nephews.
Rosie’s life will be celebrated on Monday, June 19, 2023, beginning with a visitation at 10:00 a.m. followed by Mass of Christian burial at 11:00 a.m., at St. Joseph Church. Interment will follow in Mt. Calvary Cemetery and a lunch will be served at the church basement after the burial. Memorials may be left to Children’s Mercy Hospital (Donate to Children's Mercy (childrensmercy.org) or Mount St. Scholastica (Make a Donation – Mount St. Scholastica (mountosb.org). Funeral care has been entrusted to the Arensberg-Pruett Funeral Home.
