Rosie Knopp Everheart

PAUL – Rosie Knopp Everheart, 83, of Paul, passed away peacefully on Monday, June 4, 2012, at the Countryside Care and Rehabilitation in Rupert, after a lingering illness.

She was born on Aug. 14, 1928, on the family farm in Burley, Idaho, the ninth of 11 children born to Jacob and Amelia Schneider Knopp (immigrants from Russia). She received her education in Minidoka County, attended Paul High School and graduated from Rupert High School. She married the love of her life, James Daniel Everheart, on Aug. 8, 1948, at the Paul Congregational Church. Throughout their married life, they worked in the agricultural field – primarily in custom farming. They engaged in a variety of agricultural adventures, wherever the potatoes were found growing.

Rosie was employed at the J.R. Simplot plant in Heyburn, and worked at a variety of family endeavors including Dan’s Sport Shop in Paul, and in managing numerous rental units and the family farm. However, her main occupation in life was her “family.” She was a devoted wife (working side-by-side with her husband), a loving mother, and a cherished grandmother. She was instrumental in starting and maintaining the Knopp Family Reunion. This event is still a favorite among her siblings, nieces and nephews.

Rosie was extremely talented and used her skills in making the family’s many houses a “home.” She enjoyed embroidery work and crocheting, was a designer and maker of beautiful quilts, and was an outstanding seamstress. She initiated and supervised the Knopp family quilt that was raffled off at each reunion. She was able to create intricate items of beauty from mundane pieces of cloth – be they frontier shirts, baby quilts, or pillow cases to be given away to those she loved. She was taught by her parents whom instilled in her the importance of hard work. She made do with what they had and never let garden produce, a scrap of fabric, or a piece of thread go to waste. Many family members had the opportunity of learning the arts of canning, cooking and quilting working along-side Rosie. She became an avid fisherman and skilled camper – not necessarily by choice, but rather as an outgrowth of her devotion to her husband.

She was a true Christian woman and loved the Lord. In her younger years, she was active in the Paul Congregational Church and participated in various organizations. She and Dan joined the Burley First Presbyterian Church and were faithful and devoted members for the remainder of their lives. Rosie served as president of the Presbyterian Women Organization and helped start the annual Women’s Harvest Bazaar that included making the noodles, German coffee cake, and breoke’ (German meat pies) that were sold. She also assisted in organizing the Men’s Sausage Supper and made the biscuits for this annual event. She had a beautiful alto singing voice and enjoyed singing in the church choir until she lost her hearing and was unable to continue.

She is survived by her two daughters, Darla (Randy) Holl of Rupert, and Denise (Grant) Clark of Albion; two granddaughters, Michelle (Shaun) Creque of Meridian, and Amelia Mae Clark of Albion; one sister, Claira (Art) Hirning of Pocatello; one brother, Ben (Mavis) Knopp of Golden, Colorado; a brother-in-law, Elmer Fetzer of Yuma, Arizona; a sister-in-law, Alma Knopp of Burley; and more than 100 nieces and nephews whom she deeply loved.

Rosie was preceded in death by her parents; her husband; a beloved daughter, Danna Rose Everheart; and her siblings, Jacob (Mary) Knopp, Mary (Alex) Gerlach, David (Ella) Knopp, Victor Knopp, Edward (Esther) Knopp, Leah (Harry) Serr, Martha (Albert) Meyer, and Esther Fetzer.

The family expresses their sincere appreciation to Dr. Margo Saunders and her staff, and to the staff of Minidoka Memorial Hospital, Countryside Care and Rehabilitation Center, and Autumn Haven Assisted Living in making Rosie’s final journey in life easier through your loving care. We truly appreciate all you did for her.

The funeral will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, June 9, at the Burley First Presbyterian Church, 2100 Burton Ave., with the Rev. Dr. David Henry officiating. Burial will be in the Paul Cemetery.

Friends may call from 6 until 8 p.m. Friday, June 8, at the Rasmussen Funeral Home, 1350 E. 16th St., in Burley, and from 1until 1:45 p.m. Saturday at the church.

The family suggests memorials be directed to the Burley First Presbyterian Church in remembrance of Rosie K. Everheart.