Elaine Oles

Elaine “Rose” Oles, 80, a resident of Bettendorf, Iowa passed away unexpectedly on Tuesday, December 4, 2012 at Trinity Medical Center in Rock Island, Illinois.

A service to celebrate her life will be held at 11:00 A.M. Saturday, December 8, 2012 at Asbury United Methodist Church, 1809 Mississippi Blvd., in Bettendorf where she was a long-time & devoted member.  Visitation will be from 3:00 P.M. to 8:00 P.M. on Friday at the McGinnis-Chambers Funeral Home in Bettendorf and from 10:00 A.M. to 11:00 A.M. Saturday at the church.  In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Asbury United Methodist Church.  Private committal services will be held at the Rock Island National Cemetery.

She was born January 7, 1932 in Rowley, Iowa, the daughter of Lawrence W. & Hulda (Thedens) Rosene and was a 1953 graduate of the Iowa State Teacher’s College in Cedar Falls, Iowa.  On June 12, 1954, she was united in marriage to Raymond W. Oles in Rowley.  He preceded her in death on January 20, 1982.

Rose was an accomplished pianist and taught piano for over 50 years.  In earlier years, she had also served as an accompanist at the Bettendorf and Pleasant Valley High Schools.

As a loyal member of Asbury, she sang in the choir and performed in the bell choir for many years.  In addition, she was a member of the P.E.O. Chapter GW, the Original Music Students Club, the Federated Teachers Association, the Quad-City Music Teachers Association and a 40-year member of the Handel Oratorio Society.  Rose also volunteered for many years for the Quad-City Symphony and the John Deere Classic Golf Tournament.

She loved music, enjoyed playing golf with her friends, was an avid bridge player and also did needlepoint in her spare time.

Those left to honor her memory include her daughter, Laura (Lee) Strub of New Brighton, Minnesota; her sons, Lt. Col. (Ret.) Gary (Debra) Oles of Jacksonville, North Carolina and Mark (Amy) Oles of Francestown, New Hampshire; her grandchildren, Brandon Strub, Courtney Strub, Ashley Oles, Zachary (Kaitlyn) Oles and Elizabeth Oles; her brothers, Norman (Shirley) Rosene of Rowley, Iowa and L. Benjamin (Jan) Rosene of Bloomington, Minnesota; and many other relatives and wonderful friends.

In addition to her husband, Rose was preceded in death by her granddaughter, Sara Elaine Oles; her sister, Vanda Rosene Hanna; and by her parents.