Rose B. Bike's Obituary
Rose Bike (8/10/27 – 5/8/15) was one of four children born to Lillian (Luba) Koltunow and Ben Waxman in the Polish/Ukrainian Chicago neighborhood of Rogers Park. Growing up in the upstairs rooms of her mother’s bakery and lingerie shops, Rose came to womanhood at the end of World War II. She had a soft spot for animals and Franklin D. Roosevelt, the President of the United States. Her working-class Jewish schoolmates at Tully High School remembered her as the privileged girl with the nice clothes and shoes, but in fact Rose was not a child of privilege. She learned early on to work hard in the family business along with her mother and older sister Idelle, two siblings having passed away at an early age.
Rose was accepted at Northwestern University, but “got cold feet” at registration and ran home, having received no encouragement from her mother to attend college. Instead Rose began working at the telephone company as an operator and continued for many years in that line of work, eventually becoming a supervisor and trainer of new operators in Tucson.
Rose Waxman met Joseph Bike in Tucson during a trip her mother took to recover from an illness. After returning to Chicago, Rose received many long romantic letters from “Joe,” and her heart was captured. Against mother’s wishes, Rose flew to Tucson in 1951 and eloped. Joe always said that despite her “fat” ankles, he fell in love with her instantly because she looked like the perfect picture of Jewish womanhood and motherhood.
Rose had two children – Benita (Bonnie) in 1952 and Leonard in 1960. She and Joe worked hard to provide a nice home and life for their close knit family. Rose took great pride in her home and constantly decorated. She also was a stylish dresser who purchased a great many clothes (and jewelry and shoes and wigs!). Rose loved to dance and “have some fun,” but she also was a proud, private person who at times resisted group associations and affiliations. Her home was her castle and her family was her world.
Joe passed away in 1990, and Rose was beside herself. Having lost her father at the age of 7, Joe was lover, father, and best friend to Rose, and without him, she was lost. With time she healed and spent the last 25 years of her life living an independent life in her own apartment in Tucson. She played mahjong, lunched with friends, and spent many wonderful moments with her good friend Robert.
Daughter Benita, son Leonard, and Robert Haugen send Rose on her way with messages of love and much gratitude.
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