Flora Rose Rogers

1931 - 2022

Flora Rose Rogers Flora Rose Rogers (nee Maggiora) passed away peacefully on March 15, 2022 at her home in Sausalito surrounded by her family. She was 90 years old. Flora was a proud native of Sausalito where she made her home for 90 years. Flora was born on September 26, 1931 in Asti, Italy in the northwest region of Piemonte to Luigi (Louie) Cristoforo and Luigia (Louise) Prasso Maggiora. Word is that she really was born on September 25th, but the family could not register her birth until the 26th, so that is the day recorded as her birthday. When Flora was nine months old, she and her mother took a ship and bravely crossed the Atlantic sailing from Italy and landing in New York. (Her father was living and working in Sausalito at the time in the construction industry.) In New York they stayed with relatives for a time while Flora recovered from an illness caught on board the ship. After her recovery, they came to Sausalito where they lived for a short time with her father's brother (Vincenzo) and wife (Adele) on Harrison Street until they moved to Spring Street, a street she has lived on for 90 years. In Sausalito she attended Mt. Carmel Academy and Central School. In 1949 she graduated from Mt. Tamalpais High School in Mill Valley. While in high school, she loved playing the drums in the school's marching band. On May 27, 1937, Flora was one of 200,000 to proudly cross the Golden Gate Bridge for the first time on "Pedestrian Day." Her father had worked on the building of the bridge. Flora, an only child, had a happy childhood surrounded by extended family and friends, who also lived in the immediate neighborhood. Family life included bountiful Italian meals hosted by her mother, playing with the neighborhood kids or her beloved orange-colored cat and summers spent in Cloverdale, CA where Flora's father and his brother built a large home for extended family. The grounds of the Cloverdale home included a vegetable garden, orchard and vineyard. The ladies would can vegetables and fruit, and the men would make wine. All work was done by hand, the old fashioned way. Flora helped out and enjoyed playing in the nearby Russian River. Several other immigrants from Piemonte had homes in Cloverdale, and Flora's family would enjoy visiting and playing cards with them. The family had created a little slice of Italy in Cloverdale. After high school, Flora went to work as a file clerk for Fireman's Fund Insurance Company in San Francisco. In the summer of 1951, she met Edward Rogers, Jr. whom she would marry on May 25, 1952 at Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church in San Francisco with a reception following at the Sausalito Women's Club. Flora and Ed made their home on Spring Street and would remain married for over 68 years until Ed's death in 2020. Life on Spring Street was idyllic. All the neighbors knew each other and no one locked their doors. Dinners and garage parties with potluck meals, cocktails, dancing and lots of laughter were the norm. Kids played on the street and roamed the neighborhood freely knowing that they were safe. Evenings were spent watching that new invention: TV. Flora enjoyed participating in a neighborhood-sewing club where lady friends would meet in each other's homes for evenings over coffee and dessert, and bring along their hand sewing. It was a time to catch up on the latest gossip. After her two children, Kathleen and Michael were grown, Flora went to work in the cafeteria at Central School, and the snack bars at Tamalpais High School and Drake High School. She helped prepare and serve the meals. Good times were spent there working and joking around with the staff and especially the students. In later years, many of the students still remembered her fondly and would stop to greet her on the street. Flora later worked in a dress shop in Kentfield where she could indulge in her passion for shopping. Flora was a member of many Italian American and Portuguese American Social Clubs, the Edgewater (Sausalito) Seniors, Knit Wits, Sausalito Village and a member of the Sausalito Woman's Club. She joined the Woman's Club in 1953 when she became pregnant with her first child. Flora led an active social life: hosting and attending house parties, church and social club events. New Year's Eve was a favorite where often after a dinner-dance, she hosted breakfasts for anyone who wanted to come. At one such breakfast, one guest exclaimed, "Whose House is this?" Flora enjoyed so many things. She adored munching on Sees candies. She always had a three pound box around to share. She loved twirling around the dance floor, cruising with family and friends and watching TV. Favorite programs included the Hallmark Channel, Family Feud, Wheel of Fortune, Judge Judy (Flora got plenty of trial experience from the show) and Everybody Loves Raymond (a particular favorite since it was about an Italian American family; she knew all the episodes). And, everyone knew not to call during Dancing with the Stars. She relished sipping a Lemon Drop cocktail at her favorite restaurant, The Spinnaker, but mostly she loved spending time with family and friends. In her later years, the neighbors looked upon her as the matriarch of the neighborhood with many gatherings taking place at her home. They all watched out for her. Flora had an incredible smile and brightness about her. She was the sort of person that people on the street would walk up to and tell their life story. We will fondly remember her love of life, people and family, vivaciousness, strong work ethic, generosity, sense of style, love of food, organizational skills, enthusiasm, efficiency, strength, courage, and confidence will live on in her children Kathleen and Michael Rogers (Laurette) and grandchildren, Christopher and Sarah Rogers (Zachary), and Daniel Levy (Jinhee). Donations can be made to the Sausalito Historical Society at 420 Litho Street, Sausalito, CA 94965 or on its website at www.sausalitohistoricalsociety.com. Private burial due to Covid. Forever in our Hearts.