Rosalea “Rose” Downs Kirchner
January 2, 1944 – August 31, 2025
A beautiful, brilliant Rose left this earth and went into the arms of Jesus on Sunday, August 31, 2025. Rosalea “Rose” Downs Kirchner, 81, of Raleigh, NC, passed away on Sunday, August 31, 2025, at her residence.
Rose was born on January 2, 1944, in Hot Springs, Arkansas, at the Army-Navy Hospital in the Hot Springs National Park. She was the daughter of the late Colonel William Henry Downs and the late Mary Elizabeth Spargo Dille.
Rose chose Jesus as her Lord and Savior in her 20s and experienced much healing from Him. Rose graduated from South Mecklenburg High School in Charlotte, NC, having grown up most of her life in nearby Pineville. As a nurse, she helped others heal, having received her associate’s degree at Lucy B. Webb Hayes School of Nursing in Washington D.C. and her bachelor’s degree at the University of Oregon. Rose greatly enjoyed being a Mom to Lisa (I love you, Mom). She very much enjoyed sharing about Jesus with others and did so on short-term mission trips to Mexico, China, & Ecuador.
Rose was an avid reader with a large collection of books. She enjoyed music and was an accomplished pianist. Rose enjoyed getting to live in Germany (where Lisa was born), and she enjoyed traveling to all 50 states, Europe (including Eastern Europe), Israel, Egypt, Lebanon, and Australia, among other countries. When she and Lisa moved back to the Eastern U.S., she got the bug to hike the Appalachian Trail and finished a significant portion of it. Rose enjoyed learning and taught herself how to cook, sew, knit, garden, fix cars, among other things, and all before YouTube. She studied the Bible and several languages (including German, Spanish, French, Greek, & Hebrew).
Rose is survived by a daughter, Elisabeth (Lisa) Marie Kirchner Gurganus and husband Tim; cousins, Milton Martin and wife Mindy, Kenneth Rea Headley Downs, Sallye Richards, Gwynne Whitley, and Stuart Tathwell.
A Celebration of Life Service will be at 2:00 pm on Saturday, September 20th at Newpath Church, 9225 Leesville Rd., Raleigh, NC 27613.
In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made in Rose’s name to Life Outreach International’s Water for Life or Mission Feeding programs or to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital.
Arrangements are with Strickland Funeral Home & Crematory, 211 W. Third St., Wendell. www.stricklandfuneral.com
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