Roz Dina
Rosalind Catherine Dina
14 Aug 1949 - 03 Jul 2017
Clubs & Associations
El Camino Reelers
Midnight Squares
Obituary
Rosalind "Roz" Catharine Dina was born at 6:07 P.M. on 14 August 1949, in Mercy Hospital, San Diego, California. She was the third child and only daughter of Helen Rosalind Martin and Salvatore Bernard Dina, joining two older brothers, Don and Douglas "Doug".
The family moved to Los Altos, CA in December, 1951. There, her third brother, Alan "Al", was born on 25 August 1953. They siblings enjoyed childhood, being close to orchards and the beauty of the surrounding area.
Roz graduated from Los Altos High School, class of 1967. She met John Hancock Lawrence, III in 1980, and moved to Wenatchee, Washington in 1983, where her only child, John Hancock Lawrence IV, was born on 30 June 1983. During her pregnancy with John, she was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, and began treatment shortly after his birth. Her treatment was a success, and she lived cancer free and in complete remission until June 2017.
In the summer of 1984, Roz, John, Baby John, and their cat, Figueroa (who thought he was a dog), purchased an old yellow school bus, loaded it with all their worldly possessions and drove across the country to Orlando, Florida.
It was in Florida where Roz made her full recovery and worked in a hydroponic greenhouse. She loved getting perfectly fresh tomatoes every day.
In 1985, the family returned to the California Bay area, where John returned to work at the shipyards in South San Francisco and Roz went to work as an accountant for a property investment company. She was well known as being highly capable at solving problems, always trustworthy and very ethical. She worked very hard and was very proud of the high quality of work she accomplished.
Roz always wanted to do things the right way and would never take shortcuts.
Roz was an avid artist. She moved to Hawaii with her son, John, in 1994, to a town called Holualoa. There, she learned how to make batik fabric and other artistic crafts. She worked at a Holistic Medicine Clinic and loved being its office manager.
After a few years Roz and John returned to Mountain View, California, seeking better jobs and more money, and, also, so Roz could help her aging parents and give her son, John, a better high school education.
In 2013, after losing many family members and becoming tired of California living, Roz decided to seek a new adventure. She retired from her job at WDM Inc., a job she’d held since 1997, and moved to Billings, Montana to be nearer her lifelong friend, Mona Harris.
She adapted rapidly and was never bored by the weather. Roz was able to invest in her hobbies fully while in Billings, and spent many hours quilting and sewing beautiful quilts.
Having joined the Navy in 2007, her son had moved to Naples, Italy in 2014, and Roz was able to fulfill both her and her father’s lifelong dream of traveling to Ventimiglia di Sicilia, the home of the family’s ancestors. She loved the culture, the food and the climate in Italy, and she was able to visit three times during the three years her son was in Italy.
On the afternoon of Monday, 3 July 2017, Roz passed away, peacefully. At the time of her passing, Roz was being visited and comforted by her son and many family members at the Billings Clinic. Roz was 67 years old. She is survived by her son, her three brothers, three nieces and nephews, as well as countless friends.[1]
Memorial Panel
- 4UL | El Camino Reelers, Midnight Squares
Photos
At Star Thru The Silicon Galaxy, 2005
Obituary photo
