Obituary: Theodore Neale Rosser Jr., 74

Theodore Neale Rosser, Jr., 74, of Portsmouth, RI, passed on to his permanent home with the Lord on June 29 after a brief illness.

Neale was born in Indianapolis, IN and was the son of the late Theodore Neale Rosser, Sr. and Mary Stephens Rosser. He graduated from Howe High School.

He had fond memories of working summers on the family farm and playing clarinet and saxophone in the dance band and being an Eagle Scout. He was a proud graduate of the United States Naval Academy class of 1962 and served in the Navy for 7 years stationed in Monterrey, CA, Charleston, SC, and Newport, RI. It was while he was stationed in Charleston that he met the love of his life, Gloria “Bo” Jeffers. They had been married 49 years on June 18, 2015.

After his naval service, he spent the rest of his career as an Electrical/Mechanical engineer at Raytheon in Portsmouth, where he worked for 35 years.

Neale always had a keen interest in gardening, enjoying the outdoors and leading music where he served as choir director at Middletown Baptist Church for many years. Later on, he enjoyed singing, attending concerts with his wife, and encouraging musical gifts in others, especially his grandchildren. He loved watching sports and was a knowledgeable and vocal fan at both his children’s and later on his grandchildren’s games.

Neale was a generous and hardworking husband and father with many talents who will be greatly missed. He is survived by his wife Gloria of Portsmouth, RI, his daughter Morgan and husband Chris Hess of Bemidji, MN and his son Tyson and wife Kristen Rosser of Virginia Beach, VA along with grandsons Caleb, Luke, Benjamin and Silas Hess, Colby and Joshua Rosser. He is also survived by his sister, Ruth Hayes and her husband, Paul, Indianapolis, IN, nieces, nephews and many special friends, especially Lexi and Grayson.

Burial was in Trinity Cemetery, Portsmouth, RI on Friday, July 3 at 10:00 a.m.

Donations may be made to Insight for Living Ministries, P.O. Box 5000, Frisco, TX 75034 or to the United States Naval Academy Alumni Association, Class of 1962, 121 Blake Rd, Annapolis, MD 21402.