Michele Kay "Mikki" Rosser

1951 - 2024

Michele Kay "Mikki" (Fox) Rosser, 73, died while napping at her home in downtown Fairbanks on July 18, 2024.

Mikki was born in Niles, Michigan, on Feb. 25, 1951, and grew up in a farmhouse in Cassopolis, Michigan. In 1972, she married a local boy, Mark Rosser, and in 1973, the two drove to Alaska, homesteading for eight years near Talkeetna before moving to Fairbanks in 1982.

Throughout her life, Mikki personified the values of friendship, generosity and kinkeeping. She filled the Talkeetna root cellar with the bounty from her garden, sewed booties for Mark's dog team, crafted homemade Halloween costumes for her kids, hand-wrote letters to family and friends, and set a generous table for the many friends and family members who stopped by for a meal or a place to stay over the years.

Despite her abundant domestic talents, she was no stereotypical housewife. For decades, she worked full time at local auto parts and service companies to help support the family. She laughed loud and often, suffered no fools and enjoyed a good party. She loved being on or near the water, playing cards with her girlfriends, and hosting boisterous barbecues on the deck of the family's Denali Way home.

Mikki and Mark settled into a quieter life after their two daughters, Nara and Jessica, were grown. She became an avid swimmer at Mary Siah and Hamme pools, enjoyed biking and walking (even at 40 below), read voraciously and volunteered with several Fairbanks nonprofits.

In recent years, her community work centered on seniors. Working with Meals on Wheels, she delivered food in the depths of winter, and provided wellness phone calls and visits to many during the pandemic. She served on the borough's Senior Citizens Advisory Committee and successfully petitioning to have bus routes altered to improve service to seniors. Other volunteer work included the Lions Club eyeglass program, Friends of Mary Siah, and as president of her condo association.

Her greatest joy in later years was spending time with her grandkids, to whom she devoted a great deal of loving time and attention. She also built a network of cherished friends in her condo community whose support and caring were a source of true strength.

Mikki was preceded in death by her husband of 44 years, Mark Rosser, as well as her parents, Kenneth and Bernice (Breece) Fox, and sister, Melissa Dohm. She is survived by her daughters, Nara Rosser (Matthew Mattson) and Jessica (Joel) Burger; her four grandchildren, Lola and Delilah Mattson, and Sawyer and Mira Burger; brother, Michael Fox; and many other extended family members, including longtime friends Dale Edie and Darrell Edie, and their kids and grandkids.

A celebration of life is planned for Sunday, Aug. 25, from 2-4 p.m. at Raven Landing Community Center, 1222 Cowles St. in Fairbanks. Guests are encouraged to wear purple, her favorite color. Check Facebook (Jessica Burger) for the livestream.

In lieu of flowers, consider a donation to Fairbanks Meals on Wheels, 1424 Moore St., Fairbanks, AK, 99701.