ROSALIE CATHERINE SCIMONELLI MARTZ March 27, 1945 – 2026

Rosalie Catherine Scimonelli was born the only child of Joseph and Rose Scimonelli on March 27, 1945, in Washington, D.C. Raised in a strict Italian household, she was the living embodiment of Billy Joel’s keen observation that the Catholic girls start much too late. Doted on by her loving parents, Rosalie’s favorite childhood treat – Coca-Cola – was reserved for only the most special occasions. She attended the Notre Dame School for Girls, where the nuns utterly failed in their efforts to remove the spunk, precociousness, and independence that would define her remarkable life.

She enrolled at Frostburg State College in 1963, where she met Harry Martz and was promptly married and pregnant with her first child, Joseph, by March 1965. Rosalie became fully devoted to her role as a mother and proudly gave birth to two additional children, Jeffrey in 1969 and Angela in 1972. In this role, she followed her husband first to Blacksburg, Virginia, then Houston, and finally Lubbock, Texas.

These early years with young children were something she always treasured and reminisced about. No holiday passed without cakes, decorations, and appropriate costumes for her usually reluctant children.

Her skills as a hostess were so renowned that she was asked to serve as the director of the Wendy Ward Charm School at the local Montgomery Ward. The independent spirit remained, however, and Rosalie found herself thrust into the role of single mother in 1975. She was tenacious in protecting and caring for her children, often holding two or three jobs and using her especially persuasive skills to provide by any means necessary.

As a poor, divorced single mother in the middle of the Bible Belt, this was often challenging. Every success her children would later enjoy was built on sacrifices she made long before anyone else could see the outcome. Even then, she relished her freedom and took immediately to the Disco Age. A beautiful dancer, she at times both taught and performed as a belly dancer at venues throughout the high plains of Texas. Her parents moved to Lubbock in 1976 to help raise her children.

In 1978, she made the hardest decision of her life. She agreed with Harry that the children should move to Los Alamos, New Mexico, to take advantage of its exceptional school system. She knew this was best for them, though the decision nearly incapacitated her personally. None of her children ever doubted they were loved, and this may have been the greatest act of love she ever showed them. She compensated through frequent visits and by moving to Las Vegas, Nevada, where her talents as a dancer, hostess, and bon vivant found fertile ground.

Her time in Las Vegas would last more than two decades, where she became something of a local legend through an extraordinary story. She quickly made friends with some of the sharpest circles in the city and soon joined a budding gambling team that took advantage of a wondrous new “hack” known as card counting in blackjack. As one of the few women on one of the earliest such teams in Las Vegas, she enjoyed several years of uninterrupted success before the casinos realized what was happening and eventually banned all of the team members from their gaming floors.

She continued in Las Vegas as a dancer and hostess, and it can fairly be said that she got the best of the 1980s, as evidenced by her absence from jail, rehab, and debt collection. One perk of her high-roller lifestyle was a steady supply of fully comped rooms, meals, and shows in the late-1970s and early-1980s.

It was not uncommon for her visiting children to see some of the biggest names of the era from VIP booths, including Steve Martin, KC and the Sunshine Band, George Carlin, and many other Vegas mainstays.

Her magnetic personality continued to attract extraordinary acquaintances. For Angela’s ninth birthday, Rosalie secured front-row seats to see Loverboy at the Aladdin Casino. The opening act was a young Bryan Adams. Having attracted his attention from the front row, Rosalie and Bryan Adams spent the evening on the casino floor, and he later arranged for Angela to meet Loverboy, much to her astonishment.

A highlight of the Las Vegas years was her part ownership in the second-largest houseboat on Lake Mead, named the Lady Lee in her honor. It was berthed next to the slightly larger yacht owned by Johnny Carson. Rosalie was an accomplished water skier, and long weekends on the lake filled with skiing, barbecues, fireworks, and friends became the highlight of many summers.

Through all the excitement of Las Vegas, however, her family remained the center of her world.

Rosalie was equally devoted to her parents, and spent much of the late 1980s caring for both, each of whom passed away within two weeks of one another during the winter of 1989–1990. She continued her work as a dancer and hostess throughout the 1990s while remaining present for every significant event in her children’s lives.

By 2000, her energetic lifestyle began to take its toll. Rheumatoid arthritis gradually curtailed many of the activities she loved. She moved to Albuquerque in 2002, at roughly the same time her daughter returned from the physician assistant program in Boston. For more than two decades, she enjoyed retirement in New Mexico surrounded by her children and beloved dogs, especially her precious Chihuahua, Chico.

Her later years were occupied with her favorite music, television, and the NFL and her beloved Cowboys.

It was said Rosalie had two seasons later in life: football, and waiting for football. It remains debatable whether her favorite series was Dallas or The Sopranos, having watched each at least two dozen times from beginning to end. She could quote large portions of both nearly verbatim. She never abandoned the Disco era, with the Bee Gees always remaining her favorite band, followed closely by the Eagles and Fleetwood Mac.

She loved her daily routines, making friends wherever she went and becoming a familiar face at Albuquerque establishments such as O’Neills Pub and the Daily Grind. She continued attending concerts for as long as her mobility allowed. She was especially fond of Journey’s concert in Albuquerque, doubly so because of its connection to The Sopranos.

Rosalie passed peacefully surrounded by her children. She lived exactly as she pleased, loved fiercely, danced often, and left behind a family who will miss her terribly.

She will be interred in a memorial niche at Sunset Memorial Park in Albuquerque.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that friends and admirers consider a donation to the Arthritis Foundation, the ASPCA, or another charity of their choosing.