Rosalie Craig

Mar 24, 1947 -

Jan 14, 2024

Our very dear friend Rosalie Ann Craig, age 76, passed away at the Anchorage Pioneer Home. She was called to heaven after a valiant battle with cancer. Her Oregon and Alaskan family and friends will miss her dearly.

Rose was born in Grants Pass, Ore., to Eugene William and Opal Irene (Foreman) Schaffer.

With a sense of adventure, she traveled a lot and lived in a number of locations in the western United States. Rose moved to Alaska while in her 40s. She worked several seasonal and retail jobs, but it was in Denali National Park at the railway gift shop, that she met the love of her life, John Craig. They married after 20 years together and shared their life on Jade Street in Anchorage for many years.

Rose's many interests included gardening, planting trees, sewing, reading, spending time with her friends and staying at her cabin in the Talkeetna woods which she helped build. Rose dearly loved her furry dogs and always had treats in her pocket for any other dogs she would meet.

Rose loved being outdoors and watching birds and wildlife. She enjoyed camping with her family in Oregon on the ocean sand dunes, and she enjoyed riding ATVs along the beaches between Homer and Anchor Point. Rose always enjoyed the drive along Turnagain Arm going down to Beluga Point. When Rose went fishing, she always was the luckiest in the group. She had a lot of good times with friends at her "Bear Den" cabin near Talkeetna, and swimming in the nearby beaver ponds with her grandsons. She also loved the sandy beaches of Hawaii any time of the year.

In her free time, Rose always liked a good cup of coffee, reading her favorite book, taking the dog for a walk, going to an afternoon movie, eating macaroni and cheese, playing Yahtzee with friends and hanging out with her husband and friends at a local brewery. That was Rose for sure, enjoying the good times of life.

Rose is survived by her husband, John Craig; son, Scott Janssen (Sheila); grandsons, Parker (Alyssa) and Bailey Janssen; brothers, Eugene Schaffer Jr. (Mary Ann) and Lynn Schaffer (Kari); many nieces and nephews; and countless friends she loved dearly. Rose is remembered with love by her family in Oregon.

Rose's family would like to extend special thanks to our kind friends who helped in her final days on Mother Earth, especially Rose's best friend Christine Mason, the wonderful staff at Anchorage Pioneer Home and the caring people from hospice.

A Celebration of Life will be held for Rose on Sunday, Feb. 18, 2024. Please contact family members for details. Rose was full of love, and she will always be with us.