05/16/2023
Remembering Betty Rosskamm
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We are saddened to share the loss of Betty Rosskamm z"l, Federation Board Trustee for Life and beloved community leader.
Betty has always been engaged in the community starting with her involvement at Gates of Hope (now Shaarey Tikvah) synagogue, which was founded by her parents and other German Jewish immigrants. After her retirement, she embarked on an active volunteer career becoming the toy buyer at the Childrens Museum, coordinator of third party vendor concessions at University Hospitals main campus, providing alternative service assignments at Court Community Service, and helping customers at Thriftique, a non-profit thrift store. She has also served on several non-profit boards, including the Jewish Federation of Cleveland and Menorah Park. She has given generously over many years to health, education, and community service agencies. Betty taught her grandchildren about giving back by asking them to allocate a small fund of money every Thanksgiving to charities that they chose.
Our thoughts are with the entire Rosskamm family during this difficult time. May her memory be for a blessing.
Please read the Cleveland Jewish News obituary, reprinted with permission. Text provided below:
Betty Rosskamm, 95, passed away on May 15, 2023.
Betty was born in Furth, Germany on April 20, 1928, and moved to America at the age of ten with her parents, Berthold and Hilda Reich, to escape persecution by the Nazis.
She graduated from Shaw High School, and spent one year at Ohio University. She married Martin Rosskamm in 1948 and went to work in her family’s business – Cleveland Fabric Shop.
As the company began to grow in the 1950’s, Betty and her partner Alma Zimmerman really ran the business – Betty bought the fabrics and Alma bought the notions. Martin and Betty were always strategic partners in guiding the company’s growth, as it grew to hundreds of stores and became a public company (now known as JoAnn Stores). Martin and Betty were inseparable until he died in 1995. Betty was a smart and effective leader in a quiet, unassuming way, and continued to contribute at JoAnn until her retirement at the age of 78 in 2006.
Betty has always been engaged in the community starting with her involvement at Gates of Hope synagogue (now Congregation Shaarey Tikvah), which was founded by her parents and other German Jewish immigrants. After her retirement, she embarked on an active volunteer career becoming the toy buyer at the Children’s Museum, coordinator of third party vendor concessions at University Hospitals main campus, providing alternative service assignments at Court Community Service, and helping customers at Thriftique, a non-profit thrift store. She has also served on several non-profit boards, including the Jewish Federation of Cleveland and Menorah Park. She has also given generously over many years to health, education and community service agencies. Betty taught her grandchildren about giving back by asking them to allocate a small fund of money every Thanksgiving to charities that they chose.
Beyond her many accomplishments in business and in serving the community, for Betty – family was always first. Friday night family dinners were a valued tradition. Betty is survived by her son, Alan (Barbara), and daughter, Jackie (Dr. Fred) Rothstein; grandchildren, Michele, Dan (Erica), Michael (Sarah), Dr. Brian (Tal), Andrew (Mandi) and Zach (Shunori Ramanathan); as well as seven great-grandchildren – Knox, Taye, Max and Eli Rosskamm, and Samuel, Sadie and Asher Rothstein.
Betty loved to travel and coordinated family trips taking her mother and husband back to Europe annually for many years and organized family vacations with children, grandchildren, and often extended family as well.
Betty was kind, generous, forward thinking and effective, always in a modest way. For her children and their spouses, she has set a wonderful example, and will always be remembered as an incredible role model.
Funeral services will be held at 2:30 p.m. May 17 at B’nai Jeshurun Congregation, 27501 Fairmount Blvd in Pepper Pike. Interment will be at Zion Memorial Park.
The family will receive friends from 7 to 9 p.m. May 17, from 2 to 5 and 7 to 9 p.m. May 18 and from 3 to 6 p.m. May 19 at Barbara and Alan Rosskamm’s home.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to the Hunger Network, jHUB Cleveland (supporting interfaith families) or the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
Friends who are unable to attend the service may view a livestream at 2:30 p.m. May 17 by going to https://venue.streamspot.com/e1728d50
Arrangements under the direction of Berkowitz-Kumin-Bookatz Memorial Chapel.
