Roberta Graber Ross, PhD, was born in Stillwater, Oklahoma on January 21, 1940, to Professor Paul and Lucy Graber. She passed away on September 10, 2024, in hospice care at Hillcrest hospital. She is survived by her son, David Ross, and her two brothers, John and James Graber.

Her family moved to Tulsa in 1945, and Roberta attended Tulsa Public Schools, graduating from Will Rogers HS in 1957. She attended Rice University in Texas, graduating summa cum laude in 1961 with a BA in German. She then earned both her master's and doctorate at Stanford University, graduating in 1964 with a PhD in German Language and Literature.

While at Stanford, she met her future husband, Dennis Ross, who was studying for his PhD in Physics. They were married in 1965, and when her husband was accepted for a teaching position at Iowa State University, they moved to Ames, Iowa. Their son was born in 1969. Along with taking care of David, Roberta taught adult night classes and after school classes for elementary students.

She was a voracious reader, devouring science fiction and mystery novels in addition to more scholarly works. She had many intellectual passions. She presented papers on a variety of topics: Bertie Wooster as detective, developing games for use in the classroom, women and language, and Humboldt's theory of linguistic relativity, to name but a few. She read up on countless subjects, including Icelandic history, the influence of language on thought, Newfoundland folklore, the evolution of the modern family, and the role of women in German society. She also spent years constructing genealogies for both the Graber and Ross families.

Roberta loved travel and loved all things German. She visited Germany many times and attended two seminars at the Goethe Institute in Berlin in the summer of 1991. Her apartment was filled with the many souvenirs she brought back from her travels in Europe.

She was very community-minded. She was an ardent feminist and was interested in working toward racial justice. As a young woman, she participated in a sit-in in Alabama. Later in life, she was an active member of both the American Association of University Women and the Young Women's Christian Association.

Roberta got divorced and moved back to Tulsa in 1989. She took a teaching position at Oral Roberts University and taught German there for nearly 15 years. For a time, she attended the Fellowship Congregational Church on Harvard Avenue. After retirement, health issues forced her to move first to a smaller apartment and then to assisted living in University Village. She spent her last years surrounded by her many books in English and German.

She had a beautiful smile and a wicked sense of humor. She loved to decorate and liked to surround herself with bright colors.

She will be dearly missed.

Please join us for a Celebration of Life Open House from 1PM-3PM on Tuesday, November 26th, in The Club Room at Stanleys.

Casual attire is encouraged and light refreshments will be served.

Feel free to bring any pictures or other memories you'd like to share.

No flowers, please.