Rose A. de Guzman

Nov. 1, 1927 – April 27, 2026

A kind, gentle, thoughtful & generous soul loved by everyone

Rose was a dedicated wife, a mother who wanted only the best for her children, an affectionate grandmother, a thoughtful aunt & a loyal friend.

Her kind, gentle, soft-spoken demeanor and the elegance in which she carried herself in any fashionable outfit she donned have left an unforgettable mark in everyone’s memory!

Rose was a would-be centenarian, having passed away peacefully, only two years short of the century milestone, at Mission Viejo Hospital in Orange County, California. She lived to experience a wide gamut of historical lows and highs in the American economy & culture, from the late 60s to the present, spanning close to 6 decades. In her mother country, where she lived her first four decades, she experienced both the horrors of WWII and the economic & cultural boom that followed in the 50s. She outlived all of her 6 siblings, which included Teresa, Aurelia, Tranquilino, Gregorio, Mateo & Graciano.

Everyone - family & friends alike - will miss her! The void she leaves among family & friends will remain unfilled for a long time.

Rose hails from Lipa City in Batangas Province, located in Luzon, the largest island in the Philippines, the child of Mateo Atienza & Victoria Lasin. She obtained her college degree in education at La Consolacion College, a premier private Catholic educational institution in Manila.

She was proud to be an administrative team member at the Supreme Court in Manila while dabbling as an independent beauty consultant for a top local cosmetics brand, where she won awards in exceeding sales goals.

Chasing opportunities for a better life and gifted with a steel-will determination to succeed, Rose migrated with her mother, Victoria, and youngest son, Gary, both now deceased, to Chicago, IL, in the late 60s, where she joined her husband, Jess. There, she continued to make her strides as a member of the Personal Care dept., specializing in beauty products, at an iconic Chicago grocery-pharmacy chain.

After having lived in the Chicago metro region for 8 years, she later moved with the family to Dallas, TX, where she transitioned to a medical records staff member position at a locally renowned hospital.

Following 5 professionally productive years in Dallas, Rose finally settled with her husband Jess in sunny California, where both continued to work well into their retirement years. She worked as a medical records specialist at a well-known local hospital and as an entrepreneur of beauty care products representing a local skincare brand and as a wholesaler of games & framed art.

After her husband Jess passed away in 2007, Rose entered retirement and joined her daughter Mildred in her Orange County home.

Rose immensely enjoyed home decorating, cooking for her husband & family, entertaining visiting relatives, and expertly upkeeping her home. She loved playing the slot machine at casinos and tending to her plants & flowers. Traveling with family, she was fortunate to have experienced almost all of the domestic regions in the USA and Canada, as well as EU countries such as France, Spain, & Italy.

You Are My Sunshine is Rose’s hands-down favorite song, in deference to her husband, whom she dearly loved. A close friend remarked that both were uniquely tailor-made for each other!

The legacy she leaves will never be forgotten: her kindness, her gentleness, her generosity, her thoughtfulness, and her quiet & elegant embrace of what both fate & choices—struggles & opportunities alike— have handed her.

Rose will be profoundly missed by her children Jerry and Mildred; grandchildren Merissa & Ryan; a battalion of nephews and nieces who invariably look up to her; and dear friends, longtime & new.