Arlene Lewis Rosenquest

Helen Arlene Lewis, known as Arlene, was born on June 18, 1931, in her maternal grandparent’s house in Burnet County, near Bertram, Texas. Her parents were Milburn Jasper Lewis and Serena Helen (Ray) Lewis. She was an only child, though in her late teens she became a “big sister” to her cousin, Margaret, who came to live with them at the age of five. Arlene was a “cat lover” for all of her 90 years.

Arlene lived in the Austin area most of her life until after her retirement in 1986 when she and her husband, Stan Rosenquest, moved to DeSoto, Texas. Stan passed away in 1997, and a couple of years later, Arlene and her mother moved to Plano, Texas, to be closer to Arlene’s daughter Pam.

“Strong” is a word that describes Arlene throughout her life. Some of her challenges were physical. As a pre-teen she contracted Polio which left one leg shorter and weaker than the other. She lived with this imbalance until she had corrective surgeries in 1960-61. Years later she suffered symptoms of Post-Polio Syndrome. In her late forties, her appendix burst, and she had to be in the hospital for about a month.

Other challenges were more personal. One example is that Arlene could not finish high school on time because of family hardships, but she later went to night school in order to earn her high school diploma.

Arlene worked a total of 33 years for the State of Texas. First, she worked at the Department of Public Safety, where she met her future husband, Stan, whom she married in 1955. She then worked at what was originally called the Texas Department of Public Welfare. In order to qualify for a promotion to Section Manager, she earned college credit hours through CLEP testing and a life-experience program at St. Edwards University in Austin.

Arlene had a strong faith in Christ. She held on to that faith throughout life’s trials. She was an active member of churches including Northwest Baptist Church in Austin, Hampton Road Baptist Church in DeSoto, and finally First Baptist Church of Allen, Texas. She enjoyed being a choir member for years.

She was always thoughtful and kind to others. She was very independent, very reluctant to ask for help, but always generous and caring, ready to help others in any way she could. She enjoyed spending time with family, especially her two granddaughters, Rachel, and Becca; anyone who spent time with her would be shown pictures and told stories about the girls.

In her last years, she became increasingly in need of more help from others, which was difficult for her. She did not even want to bother family too much, and when living in assisted living situations, was still reluctant to ask for help. The care givers at the two facilities she lived in for her final eight years always described her as sweet, friendly, and pleasant.

In her final days, while looking out the window beside her bed, Arlene told friends and family that she was ready to fly up into the beautiful blue sky to go to Heaven.

She leaves behind her daughter and son-in-law, Pam and Bryan Cox of Plano, Texas. “Grandma” will be missed by granddaughters Rachel and Becca Cox. Also mourning her loss are cousins Margaret Scott and Mollie Fontenot, both of Pflugerville, Texas.

Arlene was preceded in death by her husband, Stanley Rex Rosenquest.

A memorial service will be held on October 30, 2021 at 10:00 am at Allen Family Funeral Options 2112 W SpringCreek Pkwy Plano Texas 75023. The memorial service will be officiated by Chad Selph.  If you desire to watch the service by webcast please visit: Arlene Rosenquest (funeralvue.com)

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorial donations in Arlene’s name be made to any of the following:

Samaritan’s Purse

https://www.samaritanspurse.org/donation-items/where-most-needed/

Salvation Army

https://give.salvationarmyusa.org/give/164006/#!/donation/checkout

Humane Society

https://www.humanesociety.org/