Carole Myers Rookey of North Port, Florida and Little York, NY passed away peacefully on November 3, 2018 in Jackson, NJ.
Mrs. Rookey was born in Rochester, New York in 1937 the youngest daughter of William Myers and Helene Ryan. In addition to her parents, she was predeceased by her husband, Ernest J. Rookey in 2004; her brother William Myers in 1994; and sister Helene Carroll in 2007. She is survived by her sister, Barbara Deming of Florida, brothers-in-law Thomas Rookey and Leon Rookey, and by her children, Ernest W. and Barbara Rookey of Jackson, NJ; Craig P. and Hallie Rookey of Little Rock, AR; and Lorene M. Magenheimer of North Port, FL; 10 grandchildren, 9 great-grandchildren, and many beloved nieces and nephews.
For 30 years Mrs. Rookey was the bookkeeper at the YMCA in Cortland, NY. She was a long time communicant of St. Margaret’s Parish in Homer, NY where she served in many capacities including as an Extraordinary Minister, parish newsletter editor, and member of the choir. In Florida she was a communicant of San Pedro Parish in North Port, and also served as an Extraordinary Minister both at Mass and to shut-ins whom she visited regularly.
She traveled the world with her husband, and loved collecting coins, crystal, bisque statues, and commemorative plates. She was unable to pass by a yard sale, and was an avid antiques collector. She liked going fast: cars, boats, motorcycles, snowmobiles, she loved them all. She well earned the nickname “Leadfoot.” She was also proud to have been one of the earliest women to earn a Scuba diver certification at the Rochester YMCA in 1957 when women just didn’t do that sort of thing. Mrs. Rookey was active as a volunteer at hospitals, as a poll worker, and was the long time treasurer of the HiHo Social Club in North Port. She was a loving mother and grandmother, pragmatic and sassy, a terrible patient, and an inspiration to many.
A Funeral Mass will be said Saturday, November 24, 2018 at 11 a.m. at the Church of St. Monica, 679 W. Veterans Hwy, Jackson, NJ 08527. Burial in Florida will take place in the winter. In lieu of flowers the family invites donations to St. Monica Church; put “Carole Rookey Memorial Fund” in the note section. Donations will be used to purchase a plaque in her memory to be placed in the outdoor Stations of the Cross located at St. Monica Church.