Fri Jul 30 2010
GORDON W.
ROSENCRANS JR.
Was a prisoner of war
A memorial service will take place this spring in Cleveland for Gordon W. Rosencrans Jr., 86, who died Jan. 2 in Yucca Valley, Calif. after a brief illness.
Born April 30, 1923, in Indianapolis, the son of the late Esther and Gordon W. Rosencrans Sr., he recently was featured in the Advocate for leaving copies of his diary as a World War II prisoner to his relatives.
Mr. Rosencrans, called Rosy by his family, friends and associates, graduated from Upper Arlington High School in 1941.
He played varsity basketball four years and was captain his senior year. He enlisted in the Army Air Corps and became a B-24 bomber pilot.
During a bombing mission over Austria in 1944, his plane was shot down and he became a prisoner of war in a German camp, where he spent the remainder of the war.
He was liberated by General Patton on his birthday in 1945. After the war ended, he graduated from the University of Michigan, where he played varsity basketball.
He began his business career in 1948 in Cleveland as a salesman for The W. W. Williams Co. He was vice president and general sales manager until his retirement in 1988.
Survivors include his wife Jackie Rosencrans; daughters Cheri Slattery, Joy Sharrotta of Aurora, Joanne Karl, Nancy Karl and Patty Karl; son Tom; 16 grandchildren; six great-grandchildren; and sister Martha Gardner.
He was preceded in death by sons Gordon Rosencrans and John Karl.
Details of the spring memorial service will be made available when plans are complete. Contributions can be made to the Visiting Nurse Association Hospice, 56300 29-Palms Highway, Suite 105, Yucca Valley, Calif. 92884.
Comments
By Posting to this site, you agree to our Terms of Service Be polite.
Inappropriate posts may be removed.
Auroraadvocate.com doesn't necessarily condone the comments here, nor does it review every post.
Login above or Register to comment.
0 Total Comments Home | Back
Copyright Record Publishing Co, LLC. 1995-2010. All Rights Reserved.
Content may not be republished without the expressed written consent of the publisher.
Content may not be republished without the expressed written consent of the publisher.
Dix Communications