Carrying Forward a Legacy: The Mama Rose Scholarship
Rose Wang Pu (1927–2022) was born in Beijing, China, the youngest of four daughters in a family of relative privilege. Her father was an official at the Bank of China, and as a child, she led a charmed life. Petite, pretty, and precocious, Rose—her chosen American name—was like a Chinese version of Scarlett O’Hara from Gone with the Wind.
That charmed life changed dramatically when the Japanese invaded China during the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945), and her father died unexpectedly. The wartime occupation of the Japanese brought chaos, destruction, and economic instability, making life extremely difficult for her widowed mother. Money and food were scarce, and it was during this time that Rose learned to “eat every grain of rice” in the bowl. Despite these extreme hardships, Rose’s mother persevered, determined to send all her daughters to pursue higher education at a time when few women were educated beyond the basics.
Rose’s life in America began at age 20 when she accepted an educational opportunity to study in the U.S. made possible by Baptist missionaries and her boyfriend’s family connections. She alone left her family journeying by ship to San Francisco and then by train to Wayland Baptist College in Plainview, Texas. While studying, she babysat children and ironed clothes to make extra money. After transferring to Baylor University in Waco, Texas, where her Chinese fiancé was enrolled, she married and completed her master’s degree in business administration.
Rose and George had three daughters and called Waco their home. However, as a woman, a minority, and a mother of young children in the 1950s, she struggled to find a job that matched her education. Instead, she helped her husband with his business while managing their household. As her marriage became unhappy, Rose realized she needed financial independence. When the children were old enough to be in school all day, she returned to Baylor University where she earned her teaching certificate. As an elementary school teacher and a single mother without family support, she learned to be incredibly thrifty. Above all, she instilled in her daughters the importance of education, making it clear that their studies took precedence over household chores. Like her own mother before her, Rose worked tirelessly to ensure her children had access to a good education. All of them went on to earn advanced degrees.
Once her children left for college, Rose embraced a new chapter. She married—and later buried—two more husbands, traveling the world and living in Missouri, Florida, and Texas. Widowed for a second time, she made one final move at age 80, settling in Houston, Texas, to be near one of her daughters. There, she made new friends and remained fashionable, lively, and fun. An astute financial investor, devoted mother, and doting grandmother, she also became an avid practitioner and teacher of tai chi. She loved to read, dance, and play Rummikub, always eager to learn and stay engaged with current events. She continued this lifelong pursuit of knowledge and joy until her passing at age 94 from cancer.
This scholarship honors Rose Wang Pu’s unwavering commitment to education, resilience in the face of hardship, thriftiness, and love of life.
On behalf of PAIR, we are deeply grateful to the Mama Rose family for sharing Rose Wang Pu’s story and legacy with us. Her unwavering commitment to education, resilience, and love of life is an inspiration, and we are honored to carry that spirit forward. Just as Rose once set out on a new journey, the refugee students we serve are beginning their own paths, full of challenges, hopes, and possibilities. This scholarship will help open doors for them, just as education once did for Rose. Thank you for believing in the power of learning and for helping us nurture the next generation of determined, hopeful, and bright young minds.