John E. “Sunny” Rose, Jr. joined the Odenton Volunteer Fire Company on 12 November 1963. He has been an active member all of his 48-years of service and is a strong supporter of the volunteer fire service across the state of Maryland. Over the years, he has served as Suppression Lieutenant and Suppression Captain. He has also served on the Quartermaster, Bull Roast, Commissary, LOSAP, and Training committee for countless years. Sunny served on the Board of Directors for many, many years. He is also a reliable member who we can count on to work every night of the week long carnival in May.

 Sunny’s love for fire service training drove him to become a fire service instructor in 1976 and he continues that role to this day. Since his retirement from the U.S. Postal Service, he has dedicated almost all of his free time to his first love, that of teaching fire skills to a captive audience. On any given day, Sunny can be found in any one of the four corners of the state of Maryland supporting one fire training program or another. His calendar book is a constant reminder of where he will be from one day to the next. Often his schedule will have him supporting one program in an area of the state during the day only to travel to another to support an evening class somewhere else.

 As a fire service instructor, Sunny has touched the fire service careers of many of Maryland’s fire service personnel, both career and volunteer. His personal drive and ambition as an instructor for many of our training programs has instilled that same desire in many other personnel at the Odenton Volunteer Fire Company. Many have looked to Sunny as a mentor during our instructor training process in order to “learn the ropes” from one who has been there. In April 2004, the Odenton Volunteer Fire Company recognized Sunny’s commitment to training by dedicating its new training building in his name.

 Sunny serves as Odenton Volunteer Fire Company’s chairman of the delegates to both the Anne Arundel County Volunteer Firefighters Association and the Maryland State Firemen’s Association. He maintains a record of topics discussed at the meeting of both associations and reports back at our regular company meetings to share with other members. He rarely misses an association meeting and that is only if his work schedule prevents him from attending. While never serving as an association officer, he has been active on several committees. Most notably he was a member of the Training Committee because of his involvement as a training instructor. Sunny helped select the training programs that are needed to meet our member’s operational needs and provided guidance to member companies on conducting company drills and acquiring other training for their members. Sunny also served on the Hall of Fame committee for many years and was Chairman for 2-years.

 At the MSFA level, Sunny is also a strong supporter of their activities and committees. He serves as a member of the MSFA Convention Exhibits Committee. For over 25-years, Sunny has shown up at the convention hall on Sunday morning to assist with the stuffing of the convention delegate packets. He then moves to the lower level of the convention hall where he assists in the exhibitor move-on and set-up. During the convention week, he can be found on the convention floor listening intently to the speakers and presentations that are part of the convention activities. If anyone ever needs an extra hand, Sunny is one of the first to jump in and assist.

 Sunny’s contributions to the state’s fire service have been most impressive. Some of his major awards include being recognized for his service by the West Anne Arundel County Chamber of Commerce as Firefighter of the Year in 1996, a proclamation from the Anne Arundel County Executive in March 1988 for his leadership in training, in August 1988 he received the Anne Arundel County Chief’s Unit Citation Award for commendable duty, and a Chief’s Award from the Anne Arundel County Fire Chief in 1990. He was induced in to the Hall of Fame for the Anne Arundel County Volunteer Firefighters Association in 1998 and named Individual of the Year in 2003. The Odenton Volunteer Fire Company was proud to retire Sunny’s Board of Director’s collar pins and present them to him at our annual banquet in 2000 in recognition of his many years of service to the company as a member of the Board of Director’s. Sunny was inducted in the MSFA Hall of Fame in June 2009, another impressive honor.

 As the above clearly states, Sunny is an invaluable member of the Odenton Volunteer Fire Company and we commend his efforts across the state.

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Obituary for John "Sunny" Rose Jr.

John “Sunny” E. Rose, Jr., 72, of Millersville passed away on May 4, 2015. Sunny was born on September 3, 1942 in Baltimore. He grew up on a farm in Odenton, Maryland and had a life-long love of gardening. Sunny was a Letter Carrier and Supervisor for the US Postal Service for 42 years. He was a member of the Odenton Volunteer Fire Company, joining on Nov. 12, 1963. He also began his employment with the Maryland Fire and Rescue Institute on Jan. 27, 1977. Sunny was inducted into the Anne Arundel County Volunteer Firefighters Association Hall of Fame in 1998 and was also inducted into the Maryland State Firemens Association Hall of Fame in 2009. Sunny also received many award and citations throughout his many years of service.

Sunny is survived by his beloved wife of 52 years, Karla Rose; his devoted children, John E. Rose, III and his wife, Tara and Brian C. Rose; his grandchildren, Jacob A. and Karly E. Rose; his brothers, William P. Rose, Sr. and his wife, Linda and Robert L. Rose and his wife, Pat. He is also survived by many nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers contributions may be made to the Odenton Volunteer Fire Company, 1425 Annapolis Rd., Odenton, MD 21113