Our beloved Mother and Grandmother, Ada Rose Follman, died Oct. 16, 2024, at home after an unexpected illness. She was born in Coloma, Michigan to Frances Runge Stainbrook and Floyd Andrew Stainbrook in 1930. She went to Coloma Public Schools.
On June 18, 1951, Rose married our father, Ralph Bradeen Follman and together they shared 65 years of adventures! Mom was the heart of our home and family. She raised four children, Bruce, Henry, Craig, and Leanne, in a happy and loving home to be independent and thoughtful adults. Rose also helped the other moms and welcomed all the neighborhood kids in for snacks or a drink. Rose took great pride in being a stay-at-home Mom. She could sew, cook, bake, entertain, and kept an immaculate home. She helped with Cub Scouts and Girl Scouts, school cake walks, and made sure we were fed the right kinds of food before all our athletic activities. When we were old enough, she had a few jobs to help us with our extra wants, or spending money during college. She loved her job at Upton Middle School as a lunch lady! She could make the best darn apple crisp ever!
As the years went on Rose added her Bonus Children, Rosanne, Debbie, and Larry, all of whom she loved as her own. As a grandmother the best way to describe Rose is love. Rose loved her grandchildren, Joshua (Mariana) Follman, Katie Follman (Mark) Miller, Garrett and Brandon Follman, Lindsey (Deshawn) Houston, Taylor Welch, Carly Welch, Jemi Follman and Charlie Follman. She was the best grandma ever! Being their confidant, teaching them how to cook and bake, giving them advice, telling them stories, generally spoiling them rotten including something to take home as a treasure. As a great-grandma to Katelyn (Tristan) McKnight, Clayton Adams, Elise Adams, Elliot Minnema, Lyric, Isley and Haven Houston she always had a treat, a book or game to play, and always something to take home as a treasure! Her eyes would sparkle with delight by the sight of her grandkids. They all were the apple of her eye!
Rose was preceded in death by her husband Ralph as well as all her siblings, Mary Loveland, Genevieve Hall, Junior Stainbrook, Charles Stainbrook, Paul Stainbrook and George Stainbrook as well as a bonus daughter Debbie Regney-Follman with whom she loved dearly. Rose lost her best friend Joan Olson recently, and she felt lost without her. Joan and Mom would talk all day long on the phone, have sleepovers where they played cards, did each other’s hair and nails, watched movies, and ordered pizza. Once they took off to the casino without telling anyone and had to call to say they’d gotten stuck in a blizzard and had to stay the night! They really were the Golden Girls!
Rose was loved by everyone who knew her. Once you met her, you loved her. She was compassionate and gentle, patient, loyal, thoughtful, generous, wise, sincere, and was known for her kind heart. She was the heart and soul of our family, and she will be dearly missed. In the five days we shared before she left us, she made it clear that she had a great, long happy life! She had the best family, the best kids, and the greatest husband, who she adored, and she could hardly wait to see him again. Rose was Catholic and she tried her hardest to teach it to all of us. She truly believed in Jesus and that the Lord would always be with us. Her children can all recite proclamations and poems. Rose infused her kids with books and learning, music from every genre and stories of her past. She encouraged us to try every sport and club. Rose got the kids everywhere they had to go! Most importantly, Rose taught her children to care about others, to give of themselves and to do the right thing!
After her children were grown, she enjoyed taking special trips with each of us; a trip to Long John Silver’s and estate sales with Bruce and Rosanne, many a scenic drive with Henry as well as staying the night at his house, a trip to the casino with Craig followed by a drive down memory lane all over the county, Girls Trips and Jeep excursions with Leanne. She enjoyed her daily calls from Bruce and Rosanne in Montana. We all kept Mom busy with fun activities and too many adventures to list!
At Rose’s request, there will be no funeral. Our parents’ wishes were for us to combine their ashes together for eternity at a small family graveside gathering in the Coloma Cemetery where most of Mom’s family is buried.
Rose was the most giving, thoughtful, and kind person. Rose gave random acts of kindness to others so very often. It was not unusual for her to cook an entire meal for a sick friend, or to make Thanksgiving dinner for her friends who couldn’t anymore. She made loaf upon loaf of holiday breads and hundreds of varieties of cookies for others asking us kids to deliver! Some of the charities Rose supported were, Wounded Warrior, Father Flanagan’s Boys Town, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, and Fraternal Order of Police. If you would like to honor the love that you received from Rose then pay it forward; be kind to others, help a friend, rake for the elderly, donate to a cause for children, give to a recovery house, a homeless shelter, a sock/glove/hat drive. Be like Ada Rose and sprinkle kindness wherever you go!
She will be missed beyond measure. She was not only the greatest Mother but also our best friend.
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