Rosa Lee “Rosie” (Kief) Glanzman

September 28, 1945 – May 22, 2026

Rosa Lee “Rosie” (Kief) Glanzman passed away on May 22, 2026, at the age of 80, leaving behind a legacy of compassion, creativity, adventure, and unwavering love for her family.

Rosie was born on September 28, 1945, in Long Beach, California, to Alvin Jess Kief and Rose May (Sanders) Kief. She was the third of five children, growing up with her older sisters, Mabel and Helen, younger sister Jean, and younger brother Alvin James “Jim” Kief. Shortly after Jean’s birth in 1947, the Kief family moved to Cottage Grove, Oregon, where her father worked as a diesel mechanic supporting major dam construction projects in the Pacific Northwest. Rosie spent her childhood there and graduated from Cottage Grove High School with the Class of 1963.

Following high school, Rosie pursued her dream of becoming a nurse by attending Good Samaritan Hospital School of Nursing in Portland, Oregon. She graduated as a Registered Nurse with the Class of 1966, beginning a career devoted to caring for others that would span more than four decades.

After nursing school, Rosie moved to Eugene, Oregon, where she worked in the Emergency Department at Sacred Heart Hospital. It was there that she met the love of her life, Jeffery Glanzman.

Rosie and Jeff built a life centered on love, family, and adventure. They moved to Boise, Idaho, where they welcomed their daughter, Kimberley and were married on July 15, 1977. Their son, Brendon, later completed their family.

One of their greatest adventures began when Jeff accepted an engineering position with the Department of Defense supporting weapons testing at the Atlantic Undersea Test and Evaluation Center (AUTEC) on Andros Island in the Bahamas. The family embraced island life and the unique experience of living in an international community before returning to Bremerton, Washington, in June 1990.

After returning to Washington, Rosie continued her nursing career in the Intensive Care Unit and Progressive Care Unit at Harrison Memorial Hospital. In 1991, she joined The Doctors Clinic, where she worked alongside cardiologist Dr. Michael Hegawald for 17 years until her retirement in 2008. She was known as a skilled, compassionate nurse whose calm presence brought comfort to patients, families, and coworkers alike.

Outside of nursing, Rosie expressed her creativity through sewing and cooking. She learned to sew as a young girl, making and mending clothing for herself and her siblings, and developed a remarkable ability to recreate designer fashions. She lovingly made countless handmade gifts, especially beautifully crafted napkins and placemats. One of her greatest expressions of love was sewing all of her daughter’s high school dance dresses.

Rosie was also a fantastic cook who passed her recipes, techniques, and joy of preparing meals to her daughter, Kimberley. Her kitchen was a place of gathering, teaching, and love where family traditions were created and shared.

Retirement opened the door to another of Rosie’s greatest passions: travel. Between 2004 and 2022, she and Jeff took more than 20 cruises, beginning with many treasured voyages alongside Jeff’s mother, Bernice Glanzman, and continuing their adventures together after Bernice’s passing in 2010. Their travels included multiple voyages to Alaska, Mexico, and South America, including passage through the Panama Canal; Northern Europe; circling Hawaii; and their longest voyage, a transpacific journey to Australia and New Zealand. Rosie was especially proud to achieve 5-Star Mariner status with Holland America, reflecting years of unforgettable journeys and experiences around the world.

Above all, Rosie was devoted to her family. She found immense joy in sharing stories and photographs of her grandchildren’s accomplishments, activities, and family adventures. She was a loving wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, and friend whose kindness, strength, and generosity touched everyone around her.

Rosie was preceded in death by her parents, Alvin Jess and Rose May Kief, and her sisters, Mabel Armstrong and Jean Wilson.

She is survived by her beloved husband of nearly 49 years, Jeffery Glanzman; her daughter, Kimberley Stebner; her grandchildren, Zachary, Madeleine, and Wesley Stebner; her son, Brendon Glanzman; her sister Helen O’Keefe; her brother Alvin James “Jim” Kief; and many nieces, nephews, extended family members, dear friends, former classmates, nursing colleagues, and the many patients whose lives were touched by her compassionate care.

A Celebration of Rosie’s life will be held on Sunday, June 28, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. at her daughter Kimberley’s home in Bothell, Washington. Please contact Kimberley at 206-353-8992 kglan@yahoo.com for address details. Those unable to attend are warmly invited to share stories, memories, photographs, or messages honoring Rosie’s life.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to breast cancer research or another organization supporting women’s cancer research, causes that were especially close to Rosie’s heart.

Rosie’s life was defined by a spirit of care and adventure. Whether she was comforting a patient, sewing a treasured gift, preparing a family meal, proudly sharing a photo of her grandchildren, or watching a new destination appear on the horizon, she found joy in caring for others and embracing life’s adventures.

She will be deeply missed and forever remembered.