Anna Beatrice "Bea" Rowand, passed away on June 27, 2024. Raised in Collingswood, NJ, Bea was a former resident of Atlantic City, NJ, Lake Placid, NY, and Audubon, NJ. She was 99 years young.

Bea was a graduate of Collingswood High School (class of '42) and Frankford School of Nursing, Philadelphia, PA (class of '45). She began her nursing career making home wellness visits for the Philadelphia Department of Health, taking the bus and then walking across the Ben Franklin Bridge. She then worked at Atlantic City Hospital in Atlantic City, Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Camden, and did private duty nursing. For many years she was the nursing supervisor at Lake Placid Memorial Hospital, and also worked as a ship's nurse for Holland-America Line, traveling the world on more than two dozen cruises - crossing the equator multiple times, sailing through the Panama Canal, and visiting every continent but Antarctica.

All who had the joy of knowing Bea knew her great passion for figure skating. She began skating in her 20s and became a United States Figure Skating Association gold medalist in her 40s. She served for more than 50 years as a judge for the USFSA, traveling up and down the East Coast for competitions too numerous to count. She took great pride in having formed and coached the Placidettes, a precision skating team for young adults, in Lake Placid, NY, taking them to several competitions. For many years she also coached the Philadelphia Scribes and Bea's Follies, adult- and master-level precision skating teams, in Ardmore, PA. With them, she competed nationally in nearly every state, including Alaska. Bea was a talented musician, artist and writer, applying these gifts to her teams' music selections, choreography, costume design, and the many beautiful (and witty) poems she wrote about the sport. She was active on the ice into her early 80s.

Along with her membership in the USFSA, Bea had been a member of the Skating Club of Lake Placid, Philadelphia Skating Club and Humane Society, the National Ski Patrol, Glenview Bowling League, Gloucester City Stamp Club, Merchantville Stamp Club, and the Pool Pals. She had deep compassion for animals and was a steadfast supporter of many welfare organizations. There was always at least one animal companion under her roof, and whether it had feathers, fur, scales, or especially a turtle shell, it had a welcome home with Bea.

Some of her fondest memories of her youth in Collingswood were summers spent swimming in Roberts Pool, parade marches with the high school's all-girl Drum & Bugle Corp where she played the snare drum, and the many camping trips she enjoyed with her scout troop. She was a lifelong supporter of Girl Scouts of America and was actively involved with the organization into adulthood, receiving an award of distinction. She had a great gift for making lifelong friends wherever she went.

She was preceded in death by her parents, J. Earl and Susan (Patterson) Rowand, her brother, J. Earl "Jack" Rowand, Jr., and her aunt, A. Beatrice Flynn. She is survived by cousins Martha Thomas and Susan Dilks, dear friends Hank & Lois Miller, Kevin Kuehnert, Elizabeth Garber, Lois Harwood, Jane Stites, and her church family at Holy Trinity, where she was a beloved and lifelong parishioner.

Relatives and friends are invited to attend her visitation on Tuesday, July 9 th at 10:00 to 10:30 AM followed by the Burial Office and Holy Eucharist 10:30 AM at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, 839 Haddon Ave, Collingswood, NJ, 08108. Interment Harleigh Cemetery, Camden, NJ.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in Bea's memory to Holy Trinity Episcopal Church at the above address or to Voorhees Animal Orphanage, 419 Cooper Rd, Voorhees, NJ 08043.

Arrangements by the Foster-Warne Funeral Home, Collingswood and Audubon, NJ.