Jack Palmer Rosebrook, age 89, died Feb. 10, 2010 at Careage of Whidbey, Coupeville. He was born May 23, 1920, in Humboldt, S.D., to Charles and Ruth Rosebrook. He was raised in Dixon, Ill.
Jack entered the U.S. Navy in 1939, as a Boatswain Mate, serving in WWII in the Southwest Pacific and Korea. He was stationed aboard the USS Pennsylvania, the flagship of the Pacific Fleet, at Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, when the Japanese attacked. Jack was a proud Pearl Harbor survivor who never forgot the friends he lost in battle.
Jack was married to Alva Alewine on Feb. 26, 1946, in Savannah, Ga. Jack and Alva were transferred to NAS Whidbey in the early 1950s. Jack was a black shoe sailor and submariner, serving aboard a submarine, a mine layer/destroyer, attack/cargo ship and two minesweepers and a destroyer. Jack was also a boxer and became boxing champion of the Third Fleet. He ended his career with the Navy at San Diego, achieving the rank of CHBOSN W-2 before retiring in 1962.
Jack and Alva moved to Idyllwild for seven years, while Jack learned his carpentry skills while working with his father, before returning to Oak Harbor. He then began a second career as a carpenter for Deb Everett at Everett Brothers Construction, working there until his retirement in 1980. Alva preceded Jack in death in 1992. Jack was an avid fisherman and hunter. He loved trap shooting and he loved his dogs.
Jack was a member of the Pearl Harbor Survivors Association, Oak Harbor Elks Lodge 2362, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Whitehead-Muzzall Post 7392, carpenters’ union, the North Whidbey Sportsman’s Association and the Whidbey Island Lodge #15, F&AM of Coupeville and the National Rifle Association.
Jack is survived by one sister, Nancy Maloof of Palm Springs, Calif.; by his nephew, Buck Mantsch and wife Paulette of Hereford, Ariz.; and by his step grandchildren, Michael Guerin and Debbie Taylor, both of Houston. One sister, Jean Dunn, and one stepson, A.J. Guerin, also preceded him in death.
Funeral service for Jack Rosebrook will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 18, at Burley Funeral Chapel, Oak Harbor, with the Oak Harbor Elks Lodge #2362 officiating. Graveside committal services will follow at Maple Leaf Cemetery, with honors provided under the auspices of the NAS Whidbey Island Honor Guard. A reception for family and friends will follow at the Elks Lodge. Arrangements are entrusted to Burley Funeral Chapel, Oak Harbor.
