Mervin Lewis Rose, Sr.

Mervin Lewis Rose, Sr., 97, passed away, Thursday, January 17. 2019 in Port Clinton, OH, following a brief battle with old age. Mervin (Merv) was born on January 02, 1922 in Northrup, OH, near Gallipolis, the son of Arnold E. and Ethel G. (Amos) Rose. Merv moved with his family to Fostoria, OH, where his father established the Rose Barber Shop. Before graduating from Fostoria High School, Merv attended Andrews Barber College in Toledo, OH and then worked alongside his father. In April 1942, he married Evelyn A. Weiker (deceased); they had three sons and were divorced in 1988. In October 1990, Merv married Joan Fern (Garner) Rose and they moved to Port Clinton. Merv and Joan spent more than 20 happy years in Port Clinton, among family and friends before Joan preceded him in death in August 2014. Merv was a WWII veteran who served from 1942-1946 as a Staff Sergeant in the U.S. Army’s 394th Signal Company Aviation, and participated in the D-Day Invasion of Europe in June 1944. His military service took him to Luxemburg, Germany and Belgium. Merv’s WWII experiences are recorded as part of the Ohio Veteran’s History Project at the Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library in Fremont, OH. After WWII, Merv again worked with his father at the Rose Barber Shop, and as an office manager at Dicken Manufacturing, Arcadia, OH, before returning to barbering. In 2008 he closed the Rose Barber Shop after 70 years in business and about 150,000 haircuts. Merv is survived by his three sons: Mervin Jr. (wife Jan), Garden Ridge, TX; Steven (wife Sue), Camano Island, WA; and Kenneth (wife Lynne), Media, PA; four grandchildren; six great-grandchildren, as well as four step-children and their families. Merv was supported in his final years by his friend and companion, Gae Haueisen. Merv will be reunited with his beloved Joan near the Veteran’s Circle in Union Cemetery, Oak Harbor, OH, in a private ceremony. Memorial contributions may be given to Trinity United Methodist Church. Gerner-Wolf-Walker Funeral Home Crematory has assisted the family with arrangements.