Rose A. Schnell

Rose Anselmo Schnell, a resident of Carmel, Indiana for 50 years, died on May 2, 2026, in Carol Stream, Illinois. She is survived by her devoted husband John E. Cole Jr., also of Carol Stream. Rose was born on August 7, 1932, to Joseph Anselmo and Elizabeth Frank Anselmo of New Castle, Pennsylvania, where she developed her people skills and incredible work ethic as a teenager working in her father’s produce business. The first in her family to attend college, she graduated from Westminster College with a degree in elementary education and a passion for teaching gifted children. She began her career in New Castle and later taught first and second grades in Grosse Pointe, Michigan.

Rose married Philip H. Schnell in 1961, and they raised their daughters Elizabeth and Susanne in Michigan and Wisconsin before moving to Carmel. Rose was an active community member and an advocate within the school system, ultimately serving on the Holding Corporation for the expansion of Carmel High School. A lover of the arts, she served on the board of the Carmel Symphony Orchestra and was a frequent patron of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, Early Music Society, American Piano Awards, and Indianapolis Museum of Art.

Rose was an avid tennis player and adventurous traveler. She also set a powerful example of lifelong learning and love of reading. In addition to teaching hundreds of young children to read as an educator, she also taught both daughters and four grandsons to read at an early age and inspired a love of books in many families’ homes as a representative for World Book Encyclopedia. A resilient person of strong faith, Rose was a member of Second Presbyterian Church in Indianapolis since 1992, where she helped found a grief support group after Phil’s passing.

In 2006 Rose reconnected with John, whom she had befriended in 1957 while pursuing her master’s degree at University of Wisconsin-Madison. They married in 2008 and shared a sense of gratitude for finding each other after losing their spouses. Together they enjoyed travel, concerts, Heartland Film Festivals, and spending time with their large extended family.

In addition to her husband, Rose is survived by her daughters Susanne Schnell and Elizabeth Schnell and husband Leo Lanzillo, all of Glen Ellyn, Illinois. Her grandsons include Jeremiah of Minneapolis, Minnesota; Anthony of New York, New York; William of Basalt, Colorado; and Joseph and his wife Katie Sylva, of San Francisco, California. She is also survived by John’s son, Tim Cole, and his wife Julia of Richmond, Virginia; and daughter, Kairsten Cole DeCaro of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and their families.

Other surviving family members include her sister, Shirley Shafer, and nieces Anne Shafer and Sherre Frampton, of Youngstown, Ohio, her nephew David Shafer of Sarasota, Florida as well as her cousin, Lucyndia Marino, of New Castle, Pennsylvania. Rose was preceded in death by her husband Philip (2000) and three brothers: William (2010), Thomas (1936), and an infant (1929).

Ever ready to provide support and encouragement to anyone needing it, Rose will be remembered for her warmth, brilliant smile, her love of entertaining, and her genuine way of connecting and engaging with people. She retained her spark, spunk, and sense of humor to the end of her life.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Rose Anselmo Schnell Education Scholarship. Checks payable to Westminster College, with the scholarship name on the memo line, can be sent to Westminster College Office of Institutional Advancement, 319 South Market Street, New Wilmington, PA 16172.

Rose’s funeral service will be at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, Glen Ellyn at 10:00 am on Wednesday, May 13 and a burial service will take place at 3:00 pm on May 15 at Oaklawn Memorial Gardens, 9700 Allisonville Road, Fishers, Indiana.

Rose’s family is grateful for the loving care provided to her by the staff of Belmont Village and Suncrest Hospice.