Phyllis E. Rosenberg, 87, of Coldwater, passed away on Wednesday, February 11, 2015 at the Community Health Center of Branch County.
A funeral service will be held on Saturday, February 21, 2:15 PM at Dutcher Funeral Home in Coldwater with Pastor David Anderson officiating. The family will receive friends prior to the service, beginning at 12:15 PM. Phyllis will be buried in Montague MI at the Montague Oak Grove Cemetery.
Phyllis was born October 13, 1927 in Montague, MI to James & Rhotilda (Kemstra) Grieve. She earned her undergraduate degree in English with a minor in French, from Andrews University in Berrien Springs. She later graduated from University of Michigan with a master’s degree in Library Science. Phyllis was an English teacher in Grand Rapids and Three Oaks, MI before spending a year teaching on a U.S. Army base in Japan. She worked as a school librarian for several years in the San Francisco area. She married Marvin M. Rosenberg on June 15, 1959 in Reno, Nevada and moved to Coldwater shortly afterwards.
Phyllis was the librarian for the Branch County Library, and later Director of the Coldwater Public Library and eventually the Branch District Library. She worked for the Library from 1972 until her retirement in 1995. Phyllis led the restoration and addition of the library and established it as a district library system.
Phyllis was an avid reader and a founding member of the Branch County Literacy Council, as well as serving as a board member and tutor after her retirement. She was a charter member of the JayShees and the Cooperative Nursery School, and belonged to Altrusa, Branch County Women Who Care, the American Association of University Women and the DAR. She was a Campfire Girls leader for several years. Phyllis supported Coldwater’s Tibbits Theater, enjoyed gardening and watching U of M and the Pistons basketball. Phyllis spent many summers in Montague with her family at the Windy Cove condo on White Lake.
A loving wife and mother, Phyllis is survived by her husband Marvin, her children Laurie Rosenberg of Hillsdale, Wesley Rosenberg of Berlin, Germany and many beloved cousins, nieces, nephews and brothers and sisters in law. She was preceded in death by both parents and her brothers Howard, Forrest and Dale Grieve.
Memorials may be directed to the Branch District Library. www.dutcherfh.com.