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Marianne Rossner Brooks passed away peacefully on May 1, 2026 at 2:55 a.m. with her husband Darren by her side. Marianne was born on October 30, 1969 in Jacksonville, Florida, the first child of Sue and Ronnie Rossner. Marianne grew up in Jacksonville and early on was always the “leader of the pack”. Marianne was the oldest of 17 grandchildren on her maternal side (her mother Sue was the oldest of 10). Marianne attended Assumption Catholic School from Kindergarten through 8th grade. She would later go on to teach there, as her mother did, and get married at Assumption Catholic Church. She graduated from Bishop Kenny High School. As a schoolgirl, Marianne dabbled in softball but found her lifelong love in dance and danced at the Ballet Arts Centre in Jacksonville. Marianne’s love of dance led her to Florida State University, where she was accepted into the nationally renowned dance program. While retaining a lifelong love of dance, she would ultimately change her major to Elementary Education. She was beyond thrilled when her daughter Elizabeth shared her same love of dance. She made the most of her time at Florida State and especially enjoyed her time as a member of Kappa Delta Sorority. After graduation in 1991, she moved back to Jacksonville and started teaching 4th grade at Assumption Catholic School. Little did she know that soon after her move, a young man named Darren Brooks, who graduated from Florida State in 1992, would move to Jacksonville to take a sales job with a financial technology company. They met through mutual friends, and their first meeting was at a bar at Jacksonville Beach called “Buckets Baja”. The next week they had their first date, and each quickly knew they had met their future spouse. Marianne and Darren were engaged during the summer of 1993 and married on July 16, 1994. Marianne continued teaching at Assumption, and Darren pursued a career in the financial service industry. Marianne then took a teaching position at St. Joseph’s Catholic School where she taught Math and Science in the middle school. During this time, the couple started a family. Thomas was born in June 1997, Elizabeth in September 2001 and Jack completed their family when he was born in June 2003. Marianne’s kids and her family were always and forever the absolute joy of her life. While their family was growing, Darren decided to get his Masters in Instructional Systems from Florida State University after a chance business meeting with Sandy D’Alemberte, who at that time was the President of FSU. While getting his Masters, many of Darren’s professors encouraged him to continue in the program and get his PhD in Instructional Systems. Pursuing his PhD to study human learning and performance moved Marianne and Darren, and their children to Tallahassee. Marianne, in true Marianne fashion, was up for the challenge and excited to move to Tallahassee. And it was a win-win, because Tallahassee was so very lucky to have gained a wonderful new addition in the Brooks family. Upon arriving in Tallahassee in July 2004, Marianne and Darren bought a house in the Buck Lake area and enrolled the children at Trinity Catholic School. Marianne soon became heavily involved in the school by serving in various roles including Homeroom Parent, Chair of the School Auction (where she took the fundraising to new heights raising significant amounts for the school with her many innovative ideas and inspiring leadership), and finally in the role of Home & School President. As the kids grew older and became involved in a variety of activities, Marianne was right there alongside them, throwing herself into being the most amazing parent volunteer. Thomas excelled at gymnastics, and Marianne organized and helped host many meets at Trousdell Gymnastics Center and Gym Force Gymnastics. Elizabeth excelled in ballet and Marianne was the President of the Parents’ Guild at The Tallahassee Ballet. And Jack loved all things football, ending his stellar high school career as a kicker and punter for Leon High School, with Marianne right there as President of the Leon High School Football Booster Club. But the titles and offices she held were secondary to getting the opportunity to be present for her children while they pursued their passions. Marianne had a gift for making every community she joined feel more connected, joyful and cared for. Additionally, she was there for so many parents as a calm, loving and organized presence, and especially loved all the lifelong friends she met through her volunteering. It was always important for her to be a positive presence to those she loved, and her many numerous and varied friends all over town would agree she was always that. In 2008, she was introduced to the Cabi clothing company and became an independent sales consultant. She loved her time as a Cabi consultant and met many new friends. Her passion for fashion and her expert advice on matters of style and fit helped so many women feel confident and beautiful. She truly wanted her clients to “feel fabulous” and had a beautiful eye for detail and style, which was evident in how stylish and put together Marianne always looked. In 2015, Marianne faced her biggest challenge. She was diagnosed on July 7, 2015, with Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML). She was initially treated at TMH but because of the severity and abnormality of her diagnosis was transferred to the Leukemia floor at UF Shands, specifically the Bone Marrow wing. There she was assigned to the care of Dr. Maxim Norkin. She went through several rounds of chemotherapy and nine rounds of full body radiation before having a stem-cell (bone marrow) transplant, which she received on October 23, 2015. Marianne was finally able to return to Tallahassee in February 2016. For the next year, Marianne faced numerous severe health challenges from the bone marrow transplant, and it was not until summer of 2017 that her good health returned, and she truly began to feel like herself. In August 2018 at a follow up visit, Dr. Norkin told Marianne she was his “miracle” and said he had never had a patient with her severity of AML survive, much less make it 3 years. Over the next years, Marianne threw herself back into being a mom, selling Cabi and spending time with her friends and family. She especially loved traveling with her family. Marianne and Darren loved their trips to London during the summer when Darren would teach at the FSU London Study Centre, and they got the opportunity to travel throughout Europe. In February of 2024, Marianne was diagnosed with Pulmonary Fibrosis, which was a result of the transplant she received to beat the AML. Marianne continued to amaze all who knew her because as her fibrosis progressed and her supplementary oxygen use had to increase, she continued to live her life to the fullest despite the physical challenges she faced. The next few years brought her so much joy as she got to see Thomas graduate from FSU, start his career at PepsiCo and meet his now wife Lauren; Elizabeth graduate from Flagler College and start her career as a teacher at Killearn Lakes Elementary (which brought Marianne special joy helping Elizabeth set up her classroom) and got to see Jack kick and coach at two D1 schools (FAMU and Towson University), as well as start his career with TTI (Techtronic Industries). One of Marianne’s greatest joys in her final months was being present at her son Thomas’ wedding on April 25th in Atlanta, where he married Lauren Owens. Marianne had gotten to know Lauren over the past few years and was thrilled to have her as part of the family. The wedding was beautiful and Marianne was overjoyed to celebrate alongside family and friends and dance with her son. Marianne will be remembered for her elegance, style, fun personality, generosity, resilience, fierce determination, courage, and above all, the deep love she had for her family and friends. Marianne is survived by her loving husband, Darren, her children Thomas (Lauren), Elizabeth and Jack. Her parents, Sue and Ronnie Rossner, her sister Melissa Chambers (Kim) and many loving aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews. The family will be receiving guests for a visitation at Bevis Funeral Home on Thursday, May 14, 2026 from the hours of 6:00 - 8:00 PM. A funeral mass will be held at Co-Cathedral of St. Thomas More on Friday, May 15, 2026 at 11:00 AM. We hope you will join our family in celebrating the inspiring and passionate life of Marianne. Marianne had a passion for dance, specifically the ballet school and company. In lieu of flowers, she would appreciate any financial support of the Tallahassee Ballet, Marianne Brooks Memorial Fund: https://www.tallahasseeballet.org/mariannebrooks Breanna Green of Bevis Funeral Home (850-385-2193 or www.bevisfh.com) is assisting the Brooks family with their arrangements.

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Marianne Rossner Brooks

October 30, 1969 - May 1, 2026