Roberta T. Ross

1917-1965

Roberta was the second generation of Tucker-Ross women honored here. She was the central figure who brought the lines together when she married Paul Frederick Ross in 1942. They had five children – Paula, Susan, Edward, Robert, and Richard.

Roberta, or Susie as she was later known, grew up on a farm in Brighton, Illinois. She was known to be an excellent student and pursued that to attend college. She exercised her independent spirit by finding a job and traveling with friends. One of her journeys took her to Ames, Iowa where she fell in love with the beauty of the Iowa State University campus. A major leap of adventure must have been deciding to marry a young man who became a pilot in the Army-Air corps and later a career officer in the Air Force. This became her life of creating a home and raising children while moving frequently. Paul and Roberta were warned that "all that moving around would ruin children" and they set off to prove that prediction false.

Roberta took on the career of being an officer's wife with the many requirements imposed on her. She later told of the lessons she received from senior wives on proper etiquette for running a household with hired help, attending required social events and at all times working to assist her husband's career. It was difficult to imagine the applicability of some of these lessons as she made her home in the old barracks and makeshift housing that were available in the early years. But make her home and raise her children she did regardless of the incredible difficulties of frequent moves, absences of her husband during World War II and the Korean War, setting up house in a foreign country, and probably missing some of the stability of her former life on the farm.

Roberta had the same quiet steadfastness of her mother and used that to provide the stability the family needed as they followed Paul’s assignments across the country and to France. She didn't stop at serving her family but extended that same caring to others she met along the way. She was a support to younger wives getting used to the Air Force life and served in leadership roles in organizations she joined. She supported the many activities of her active children and served as a leader for cub scouts and girl scouts. She was active in the church and respected for the work she did there.

Roberta died young from an accident and left a newly retired husband and children ranging in age from 9 to 21. She left a legacy of dedication to others, commitment to family, resilient spirit, and making the most of life.

Submitted on 4/19/95

Paver Inscription:

"Lelia Tucker
Henrietta Ross
Roberta T. Ross
Paula R. Berg
Susan T. Ross"