Rosalie Christensen

It is with bittersweet gladness that we celebrate the return of our mom, grandma, great-grandma, and dear friend, Rosalie Swenson Christensen, to the arms of her husband, daughters, parents, and sister on May 14, 2026. She completed her mission — and she completed it beautifully.

Rosalie was born March 11, 1931 in Provo, Utah, and from her earliest days she carried a quiet sense of purpose and an instinct to do what was right. Under the watchful eye and loving care of her parents, Alfred and Vida (Fugal) Swenson, she began exploring her talents and building a life of meaning. Like her father, she loved music — learning to play the marimba and performing at church and community events. She also directed and sang in numerous choirs, choruses, and ensembles. Like her mother, she was a gifted artist, and many who loved her are fortunate enough to have her paintings hanging in their homes. She gave voice to her deepest feelings through poetry and photography, weaving both into handcrafted books she created as gifts for her family.

As life unfolded, Rosalie met the man she would call her "knight in shining armor" — Wendell Nephi Christensen. After faithfully supporting him through his mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, they were sealed in the Salt Lake Temple on November 21, 1951. Together they welcomed seven daughters into their home — Wendy, Deborah, Cindy, Julie, Peggy, and two daughters, Nita Leone and Lavinia, who were tenderly received into heaven at birth and pre-birth. Rosalie made mothering — and later grand mothering and great-grand mothering — her greatest art. Over the years she grew in confidence and in her ability to express the deep love she had always felt for others. She fought a hard-won battle with anxiety and depression and, with characteristic generosity, turned that victory into a gift for others by teaching them to do the same. Her posterity loves and admires her without reservation. They truly "rise up and call her blessed."

Rosalie's love and sense of purpose never stopped at her front door. When her youngest daughter left for college, Rosalie went too — earning a BS from BYU and, five years later, an MS in Guidance and Counseling from the same institution. As a counselor with Family Services, she guided and strengthened families, facilitated adoptions, advocated for children in foster care, and founded Brigham City Family Support Center--a community program to shelter and support women and children escaping domestic violence. Rosalie didn't believe in simply witnessing suffering — she believed in doing something about it. That conviction defined her. Rosalie worked hard to do things that were not easy for her--running (which she started as a form of therapy) and tennis. But she won awards in both, winning the Thiokol Women's Tennis Tournament in 1967, and the Peach Day Half Marathon in 1982.

As a devout member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and consistent with her lifelong purpose of love and service, Rosalie led, taught, encouraged, trained, nurtured, and supported fellow church and community members through every age and stage of life. In their later years, she and Wendell served church missions together to Spain, Chile, and Easter Island, carrying that spirit of service and teaching far beyond their own doorstep. Her life made a profound difference to many. At the end of her days, her greatest desire was simply to be a faithful daughter to her Heavenly Father and a devoted disciple of her Savior — whose life she spent her own emulating.

Rosalie was preceded in death by her husband Wendell, her parents Alfred and Vida, her daughters Nita Leone (who died shortly after birth) and Lavinia (who died shortly before birth), and her sister Arlene (Swenson) Erekson. She is survived by her brothers Alfred Gordon Swenson and Ronald Kay Swenson; her daughters Wendy (Mark) Rawlings, Deborah (Mike) Dupree, Cindy Barlow, Julie (Monte) Pierce, and Peggy (Bruce) Royer; and a cherished circle of 31 grandchildren and 71 great-grandchildren.

We invite you to join us at her viewing which will be held Thursday, May 28 from 6–8 PM at Gillies Funeral Chapel, 634 E. 2nd South, Brigham City. A church viewing will be held Friday, May 29 from 9:30 AM –10:30 AM, followed by funeral services at 11 AM at the LDS Stake Center, 650 Anderson Drive, Brigham City, where a live streaming will be on her obituary at www.gilliesmortuary.com. Interment will follow at Provo City Cemetery.