Our Mom, Anna Maria (Ventura) (Rowlett) Rushing, went home to be with her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, on April 23, 2018, and she is greatly missed.
Anna was born on June 24, 1941 in Providence, Rhode Island. She is the oldest of four children born to Adeline (Verissimo) Ventura and Michael Ventura. She has two beloved surviving siblings, Anthony Ventura (wife Ann) of Boca Raton, Florida, and Judy Ventura, of Smithfield, Rhode Island. One of the deep pains of her life was losing her brother, Michael Ventura, of San Francisco, California, in 1994.
Mom accomplished much throughout her life, and she received many accolades. She was class valedictorian and “Most Likely to Succeed” at Central High School in January 1959. She was awarded honors for her writing skills. She won sales awards and trips for her work with Avon cosmetics and Dutchmaid clothing. She was a founding member of two mission church plants in Rhode Island (Providence Baptist Church, later renamed to Faith Baptist Church (in Warwick), and Grace Baptist Church (in East Providence)). At 59 years old, she earned her Realtor’s License while working as a property manager and office manager for RSR Associates and Frank Simonelli Construction in Smithfield.
But of all her accomplishments, she was most proud of her children and grandchildren. Mom loved her family deeply, and she was never happier than when she had us surrounding her. And even in the last years of her life, when she was too ill to join us to go out for dinner, movies, bowling, or the beach, she was always thrilled that we were spending time together, as a family, and she loved later hearing every detail and seeing the photos of the smiling faces who were at each gathering.
When she felt good enough to have us visit her at her apartment, we would bring in dinner and watch old movies with her, or play board games, or compete with her in our knowledge of trivia while laughing through episodes of Cash Cab (she would record and save them for when we visited).
She was a hard-working, diligent employee…a caring neighbor and friend…and a mother who loved each of us unconditionally (even when she was mad at us…and even when we didn’t show her the appreciation we should have). She loved us, she cared about us, and she showed it in big and in small ways. She made sure that each of us knew our significance as individuals.
Mom shared the Love of Jesus with everyone around her. She had great empathy for people, especially for those who were suffering. Mom never met a stranger. She would talk with everyone. She would listen to their life story, would offer to help them in any way she could, and then she would pray for them that God would meet their needs, ease their pain, and comfort their broken hearts.
All that said, she wasn’t perfect. In fact, she was sometimes frustrating and could be a bit nutty…and then at other times she had moments of absolute brilliance. She was human. She sometimes failed. She sometimes succeeded. She always loved. And now she is reunited with family and friends who went on to Heaven before her. She has no more pain, no more sorrow, no more tears, and is experiencing the complete and perfect love of God.
We, her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren are remembering her with all of our love and appreciation for who she was, for the unconditional love she gave to us, and for the examples of kindness and forgiveness that she taught us by the way she lived her life: Sheri, Chuck, Ben, Jen, Katie, Chris, Hannah, Julia, Alexis, Kate, Braden, Julea, Ben Jr, and Emma (listed in birth order).
A Celebration of Anna’s life will be held on Saturday, November 3rd, 2018, at 2 pm, at Cranston Christian Fellowship, 1114 Scituate Avenue, Cranston, Rhode Island 02921-1806. Please join us.