Surrounded by his loving family, Mike passed away peacefully at the Berwick House in Victoria on May 24, 2025. He will be greatly missed by his family, sons Ross (Alison) and Stephen (DJ), daughter Patricia (Vik), grandchildren Cameron, Ashley, Elizabeth, Catherine, Kelvin and Nelina, great grandchildren Isabelle, Jacob, Mara, David, Henry, and Lana. He was preceded in death by his loving wife Shirley.
Mike was born in Felixstowe, England on October 14, 1936, to Cecil John Rose and Winifred Joyce Rose. He spent much of his early life in southeast England living with his mother while his father served in the Royal Navy for the duration of the Second World War. His family immigrated to Canada in 1948, eventually ending up in Victoria, where Mike met and married the love of his life, Shirley, in 1956.
Mike juggled raising a growing family while attending university, first at Victoria College, then UBC and finally McGill. He then joined the federal government as a meteorologist, living in many parts of Canada from Whitehorse to Goose Bay, finally returning to Victoria to join the BC Public Service to manage information technology departments and programs. After his retirement, Mike and Shirley had the opportunity to continue their adventures and traveled extensively. Mike and Shirley celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary in 2021.
Mike enjoyed being outdoors, passing on this love to all his family. He particularly enjoyed sport fishing and golf and was a member of the Uplands Golf Club for many years.
Mike had a long, happy, and interesting life and will be sorely missed. No flowers by request. There will be a small, family celebration of his life.
Condolences may be offered to the family below.
McCall Gardens
www.mccallgardens.com
This obituary is the property of the “Rose” family and may not be reproduced, distributed, or altered in any way without prior written consent.
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David Shelton
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Matsonia Matson I am very sorry for your loss. Mike and my late husband were best friends growing up. When they were very young Julian bought a car but couldn’t afford to buy gas. Mike and Julian took turns pushing the car and learned to drive (neither one of them had a drivers licence yet). Later on they were cadets together in the navy. They served on the war ship the Strathcona around 1956? The ship stationed in Halifax patrolled back and forth from Burmuda. I am usure of the correct spelling of the ship. The boys lost track of each other over the years. I tracked Mikey down around 2009 and they picked right up from when they left off 🙂 I enjoyed good conversation with Mike over the years. I liked making him laugh and really enjoyed his stories.
“with the spirit’s flight of all pain and suffering passes memories remain”
Matsonia Matson
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David Anidjar-Romain Colleen and I are glad to have known Mike and Shirley, who were our neighbours for a number of years. We delighted in their company and enjoyed many an evening over a glass of wine, telling stories and discussing world events. Their devotion to each other and family was an inspiration. They are missed.
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David and Jill Stevens We wish to give our condolences to the Rose family on the passing of Michael Rose. We have known Mike,Shirley and kids for many years as neighbours on Saltair Place (Gordon Head). Son, Stephen,was our prized baby-sitter. Further along in time Mike and I played golf together at Uplands Golf Course. Mike was an absolute gentleman and a family man. Mike had a long, happy,rewarding life and he will be missed by all that knew him. David and Jill Stevens
I was very sorry to learn of Mike’s passing. He hired me in 1981 and I worked for him for many years. All the way from introducing AES word processors through paper tape, hollerith cards, up to the BC Government’s shared file service. The best boss I ever had – effective, good with his staff and simply fun to work for. Mike had team building sessions – golf. Teeing off at Mt Doug golf course, I caught the ball on the toe of my driver – ball went 90 degrees off, straight into the gorse – Mike observed helpfully, that: “We’re not playing broom ball Dave”.
Dave Shelton