Rosalee 'Rose' Pfeifer Lavigne, 92

Rosalee (“Rose”) Pfeifer Lavigne of Osburn, Idaho, beloved mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, passed away April 2, 2026, in Silverton, Idaho. Rose was born Feb. 9, 1934, in Ellis, Kan. She was the eighth of 12 children born to Rosa (Bollig) Pfeifer and Mike Pfeifer. She was raised in a Volga-German heritage family with a strong Catholic faith. Rose attended Catholic schools in the Denver area until her sophomore year of high school.   

While the family lived in Ellis, her father was employed as a brakeman for the Union Pacific Railroad. Sometime in 1938, the family moved from Ellis, Kan., to Ft. Collins, Colo., where her father and some of the children worked in the beet fields. Around 1941 or 1942, the family moved to Denver, where her father worked as a brakeman for the Burlington Railroad. 

At the age of 12, Rose became a victim of polio, which crippled her ability to move. At first, she used a wheelchair, followed by braces on her legs. She would tell her children how much she hated the braces and having to walk to school in them. She worked hard to overcome this disability, and later she was able to play both softball and tennis.

While in junior high, Rose worked as a nanny part-time for a local doctor’s family. During the summers, Rose would leave the family home in Denver to continue working as a nanny for the doctor’s family while he was employed at the State Hospital in Warm Springs, Mont. At the start of her sophomore year, she lived full-time in Anaconda, Mont., as a nanny for the same family. She also attended Anaconda High School and graduated in 1952. In exchange for Rose working as a nanny, the family had agreed to pay for her college tuition at the University of Montana in Missoula.  

While attending the University of Montana, Rose was studying to become a laboratory technician. It was at the U of M that she met Dale Lavigne, and they were married Sept. 12, 1953, at St. Rita’s Catholic Church in Kellogg, Idaho. Together, they raised seven children. Rose was the matriarch of the family. She devoted many years and a lot of energy to raising the children and supporting Dale while he worked and was actively involved in community activities.  

For those who knew Rose, they know that she was much more than just a wife, mother and homemaker. But Rose explicitly told her children that at her death, she absolutely did not want a list of her contributions. It will have to suffice to say that she was a faithful servant who bore much fruit. She loved and served others in her lovely home, her neighborhood, her church, her community, including the Wallace Arts Center and many other clubs and activities she participated in.  

Rose was preceded in death by her husband, Dale, her parents, Mike and Rosa Pfeifer and 10 of her brothers and sisters. She leaves behind seven children and their spouses: Ron (Paula) Lavigne, Michelle (Tom) Kilbourne, Mike (Kellie) Lavigne, Cindy (Rand) Martinez, Dave (Ann) Lavigne, Joe (Jamie) Lavigne, and Dan (Michelle) Lavigne, 20 grandchildren, 31 great-grandchildren and extended family members Jim (Jodie) Roletto and family, and Gordon (Carolyn) Turner and family. She also leaves behind many good friends and acquaintances. 

It was a gift to Rose that she was called to be with the Lord on Holy Thursday, the day that Catholics celebrate the institution of the Holy Eucharist by Jesus at the Last Supper.

A rosary service will be held at St. Alphonsus Catholic Church on Thursday, April 16, 2026, at 6 p.m. A Funeral Mass will be held Friday, April 17, 2026, at 11 a.m. at the St. Alphonsus Catholic Church in Wallace, with Father Jerome Montez and Father Sipho Mathabela concelebrating. A reception will be held at the Wallace Elks Lodge in Wallace immediately following the funeral Mass; everyone is welcome. A private family burial for Rose will be held later at the Greenwood Cemetery in Kellogg.  

The family suggests that memorials may be made to the St. Alphonsus Catholic Church Foundation, mailing address P.O. Box 469, Wallace, ID 83873, or to the charity of your choice. Memories of Rose and messages of condolence may be shared with her family online at www.shoshonefuneralservice.com. Shoshone Funeral Services of the Silver Valley is caring for the Lavigne family.