ROSE DEBELLIS - OBITUARY

Rose M. DeBellis, 92 year resident of Little Falls, MN formerly of Grand Rapids, MN, passed away May 5, 2007 at Lutheran Care Center in Little Falls, MN after a long battle with Alzheimer's. Burial services will be in Chisholm, MN. Rose M. DeBellis was born on August 13, 1915 in Chisholm to the late Peter and Adele Badiali. She was united in marriage to Gildo (Gitz) Debellis on November 20, 1939, in Chisholm. Rose DeBellis (pictured here in 1961) has been a life long resident of Grand Rapids, where she was a beloved wife and mother and worked beside her husband in the hardware business. She enjoyed gardening, playing bridge, golf, traveling and was a member of the Grand Rapids Women’s Club. She is preceded in death by her husband, Gitz, who passed away April 26. 1993. She is survived by two daughters, Jeanne Zaborowski and Joanne Lavern. She is survived by two brothers, Louis Badiali and Silvio Badiali and one sister, Dorothy Prebil. She has one granddaughter, Sara Lavern.

Remembrances. if you wish, can be made to the -

Alzheimer's Association
225 N. Michigan Ave., FL. 17
Chicago, IL 60601-7633

EASTER IN BRANSON, MISSOURI

Lee here. We had hoped to be back home by now but the cold weather is keeping us south . . . where it is not so warm either! It looks like we should have above freezing temps next week so we will end our first retirement trip . . . 2 months and 4+ thousand miles later. Now hold still so I can get a shot of you.

CORTEZ COLORADO

Lee here. We left Arizona the end of March and headed for Cortez, Colorado. Up into northeast Arizona we skirted Monument Valley to the north and passed through the "Four Corners" area where four states touch and on to Cortez. We were pelted by small newly hatched "no-see-ums" which made the windshield sound like sleet was hitting it; eventually, further down the road, we went through a number of snow squalls. Cortez is in the middle if some of the most outstanding Navajo ruins in the US. We hiked in Sand Canyon, which was a recent addition to the National Parks in the Clinton Administration and finally Hovenweep, one of the most outstanding examples of early Indian culture. The day there was warm, sunny and off-season so in the 2 mile hike, we were 2 of 12 on the trails - serene and inspiring.

SEDONA, ARIZONA

Lee here. We spent the end of March in the Sedona area. Some claim the county there is the most beautiful in the US. We found it hard to argue with that. Again, we were blessed with excellent weather. Even the rock formations look great from a gas station! We were joined by Bob West, from San Francisco, for 3 days. He was a graduate student for Jeanne when she worked at Southern Illinois University. On our last day at Black Canyon City we couldn't resist a picture of us on a small tractor that was a backdrop to our RV site.

CURRENTLY IN BLACK CANYON CITY, ARIZONA

Lee here. We have been in Black Canyon City (about 25 miles north of Phoenix) for three weeks. We will head north to near Sedona on Monday the 24th. I finally got to see the Chicago Cubs in spring training after 55 years as a Cubs fan. We have been to art events, cowboy museums and all sorts of galleries, hiked in the foothills, saw Montezuma's Castle, cleaned the rig, and generally relaxed. Jeanne and I visited with her cousin Josie Tagliente, who she hadn't seen in over 25 years. The weather has been mostly sunny and hot except for rain the last 3 days, which will clear out tonight. We also did visits with fellow Rvers Steph and Hal Woods.

WHERE WE'VE BEEN - IN ARIZONA

Lee here. One of our waypoints was Winslow, Arizona; a town made famous by the musical group "The Eagles" and their song Take it Easy. "Standing on a corner in Winslow, Arizona. What do I see? It's girl my lord in a flatbed Ford, slowing down to take a look at me" or something like that. So I had to stand on that corner, and buy a hat, of course. Adakin and Lucy have been traveling with us. Here Jeanne lays down the law as they listen intently.

WHERE WE'VE BEEN - IN ALBUQUERQUE

Lee here. Jeanne and I had our periodic reunion with Lee and Don Duszynski. Don and I were college roomies. He spent his career at the University of New Mexico. We did a lot of sightseeing in the Albuquerque area. One of the more unusual outings was a ride on the Sandia Mountains Tramway, the longest in the world. That's quite a view from the tram car! On top was an excellent restaurant and a ski area.

WHERE WE'VE BEEN - ON TO ALBUQUERQUE

Lee here. Jeanne always has a fit when I show a picture of the motorhome. Well, I think its kind of handsome but the amazing part is all the stuff we can carry around the country in relative comfort. This sunset shot was in Santa Rosa, New Mexico. We stayed over for a few days in Santa Fe, NM. Dumb old us, Santa Fe is at high elevation and it was cold again but we had fun. Jeanne and I strolled Canyon Road there - the art community area.

WHERE WE'VE BEEN - BRANSON, MISSOURI

Lee here. The first part of our trip out of the Minnesota winter was due south to Branson, Missouri. Cold weather dogged us all the way. We did finally get some days of above freezing temperatures and did leave the snow behind. A good part of time in Branson was split between time with daughter Mary and her family, visiting with RV friends Chuck and Mary Boros and some motorhome maintenance. After about 10 days we began our westward trek.

OUR FIRST POST-RETIREMENT TRIP STARTS

Soon after Lee retired (January, 2007) we left home, just before Valentine's Day, for Branson, MO to see our daughter Mary and her family and visit friends Mary and Chuck Boros. It was -14 degrees the AM of departure and below freezing weather followed us off and on for 2 weeks. Here's our coach in a WalMart lot in Cameron, Missouri on Valentine's sunrise, below zero!