Rosemary Edlund's Obituary
NEOGA, IL - Rosemary Edlund, age 94, passed away on Thursday, February 2, 2012 at her Heartland Christian Village home in Neoga. Rosemary was born June 16, 1917 in Delmar, Iowa the youngest daughter of John Patrick and Rose Genevieve (McAndrew) O'Brien. She was one of six children, having four brothers and one sister, all who preceded her in death. In 1945 she moved to Salem, Oregon where she met and married Harold D. Hilke (now deceased) of Scotts Mills, Oregon in 1948. Following thirty-one years of marriage, she then married Loren ""Eddie"" Edlund of Salem in 1982. They shared fourteen wonderful years prior to his death in 1996. Rosemary is survived by her two daughters, Celeste Alejo and husband Rudy of Ewa Beach, Hawaii and Barbara ""Bobbie"" Hilke of Charleston, Illinois; three grandchildren, Patrick Alejo and wife Malu, Paul Alejo, and Joy Telles and her husband Edward Alika - the parents of her two great-grandsons, Edward Alika, Jr. and Ethan Makana, all of Hawaii. Rosemary remained especially close to her Oregon-based ""O'Brien"" nieces and nephews as well as her Iowa-based ""Kane"" nieces and nephews. Rosemary received her Bachelors and Masters Degrees from Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon. Her thirty-six year career as a teacher of the Deaf took her to State Schools for the Deaf in Iowa, North and South Dakota, Indiana, Oregon and Washington. In 1979 she retired following twenty-six years with the Washington State School for the Deaf in Vancouver, Washington. She relocated to Illinois in 2007 to be near family. Rosemary was a devoted and active member of the St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church in Salem, Oregon where she was a member of the Altar Society, St. Bernadette's Circle and their ""Happy Hearts"" group. She was also a member of the ""Fraidy Cat"" swimmers of the Salem YWCA. Rosemary loved her Church, her family, the Deaf Community, and the fact that she was 100 percent Irish. Arrangements have been entrusted to Adams Funeral Chapel in Charleston in conjunction with Bollman Funeral Home in Dallas, Oregon. In accordance with her wishes her earthly body will be cremated. A Graveside Service and Inurnment is planned for the second Friday in August (August 10, 2012) at 2:00 p.m. at the Belcrest Memorial Park in Salem, Oregon. There will be no services locally. Memorial gifts in her honor may be made to the Heartland Christian Village Auxiliary in Neoga or to St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital. Gifts may be mailed in care of Adams Funeral Chapel, 2330 Shawnee Drive, Charleston, IL 61920.
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