Rosella T. Rainbolt

Memorial Mass for Rosella T. Rainbolt, 81, Lawrence will be held at 10:00 a.m., Wednesday, August 8, 2018 at St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church in Lawrence. She passed away Wednesday, August 1, 2018 at Lawrence Memorial Hospital after a brief illness. Rosella was born August 1, 1937 in Broussard, Louisiana, the daughter of Alberto M. and Irene (Corne) Diaz-Granados.

Rosella earned a Bachelor degree in Speech Communication from Southwestern University (University of Louisiana, at Lafayette) and a Master Degree in Speech Language Pathology from Indiana University. Rosella loved children and taught them with compassion and skill for over thirty years in the Kansas Public Schools.

On August 19, 1961, she married Harry R. Rainbolt in Lafayette, Louisiana. Married for nearly 57 years, he was the love of her life. Together, they raised their family in Manhattan, Kansas, but moved to Lawrence in 2016 to be closer to their children and grandchildren.

Rosella was a woman of great faith. While living in Manhattan, she was a dutiful member of St. Thomas More Catholic Church. Almost thirteen years ago, she started the Women’s Spirituality Conference to give a collective voice to women in the Catholic churches of Manhattan. Over one thousand women from Kansas and neighboring states have attended the yearly conference since its inception. After moving to Lawrence, Rosella joined St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church. Rosella was an avid reader, a lover of art, music and ice-skating, a member of P.E.O. Chapter GQ, and a potter. Most importantly, Rosella was a loving sister, wife, mother, grandmother, and a loyal and true friend.

Harry R. Rainbolt survives of the home. Other survivors include her son, Michael Harrison Rainbolt, Plano, Texas; daughter, Kathryn Anne Rainbolt, Lawrence; two sisters, Lolita Tilley and Anita Mullins, both of Lafayette, Louisiana; and, four grandchildren, Natalie and Kari Rainbolt, Madeline Levell, and M. Harry Rainbolt. She was preceded in death by her parents, her brother, Albert Diaz-Granados, and her son, Thomas A. Rainbolt, DDS.

The family will greet friends from 6 – 8 p.m. Tuesday, August 7, 2018 at St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church. A Parish Rosary will be said at 6:00 p.m.

Memorial Contributions may be made in her name to Sertoma-Schiefelbusch Communication Camp or Easterseals Capper Foundation and may be sent in care of Warren-McElwain Mortuary, 120 W. 13th Street, Lawrence, KS 66044.