Kriti Mehrotra
As a docuseries delving into the allegations of financial and spiritual misconduct against Faith Temple Church pastor Mary Cosby, TLC’s ‘The Cult of the Real Housewife’ is quite gripping. It comprises not only archival footage but also exclusive interviews with those close to the matter to shine a light upon the actions of ‘The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City’ star. Therefore, of course, there’s significant focus on her family as well as the complex relationship she shared with her mother, Rosalind “Rozie” Cazares, until the latter sadly passed away.
Rosalind Cazares Was a Woman of God, Determined to Follow in Her Mother’s Footsteps
Born on February 21, 1949, in Indianapolis, Indiana, Rosalind “Rozie” Cazares was the second of six children of Rosemary “Mama” Redmon and William Ernest Walton. She admittedly grew up in a religious household where kindness and mindfulness were above all else, so they focused on the positives even after the parents eventually separated. However, per the show, things changed in 1961 when her mother claimed she felt a spirit prompting her to literally walk all the way to Salt Lake City, Utah, to establish her own Pentecostal church there. Mama, Rozie, and three of her young siblings walked along the highways, hitchhiked, and slept wherever they could for months until they ultimately arrived in the City of the Saints. Mama then established Faith Temple Pentecostal Church.
The success of Faith Temple Pentecostal Church allowed Mama to expand her reach by acquiring properties and launching businesses. As for Rozie, she realized her faith through choir — she sang gospel, played the drums, and engaged with the piano, before eventually evolving into a voice coach. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in Business from Utah Technical College in 1977, but chose to follow in her mother’s footsteps after her studies because she saw genuine beauty in it. She became a certified pastor at Faith Temple Church and worked hard to obtain the title of Minister of Music as well, since she wanted to do something she was passionate about. In the latter position, she passed on her skills to newer generations without hesitation, resulting in her training over 1,000 voices while directing over 60 events by the 2020s.
Rosalind Cazares Became Estranged From Her Daughter in the 1990s
While Rozie’s priority was her devotion to God, she was also a family woman in every sense of the term, as she had tied the knot with Lamar Jefferson at some point in her young adult life. The couple had happily settled in Salt Lake City, where they welcomed five beautiful children: Quinton, Denise, Adrian, John, and Mary Jefferson. According to claims made by former church members in the docuseries, their youngest allegedly ended up going down the wrong path during her teen years. It has been alleged that Mary’s actions were “bringing reproach on the church” to such a level that she was disfellowshipped by her grandmother, which was Faith Temple’s way of excommunicating members.
She was trying to get back into the good graces of the community when Mama suddenly passed away from heart failure in her St. Cloud, Florida, vacation home on January 4, 1997. Mama’s then-husband, Robert Cosby Sr., subsequently took on her legacy, which was inherited by Mary when she married him more than a year later, on September 27, 1998. Rozie had already contested Mama’s estate since she reportedly didn’t want the control of everything to pass to Robert alone, and she fought it even more once Mary tied the knot with him.
It appears that the assets were eventually divided among the pastor’s children, but the majority – the properties, the large businesses, and the church – remained with the new couple. Having said that, it is imperative to note that public records regarding the final probate distribution are limited. Hence, the mother of 5 walked away, yet she remained devoted to God through choir, all the while also operating Mama’s Plantation, Mama Gospel Records & Tapes, and Rozie’s Balloons & Flowers.
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Rosalind Cazares Passed Away in Early 2025
As the years passed, Rozie’s relationship with Mary remained fractured, but she did her best to move on with her life. She tied the knot with Mark Cazares, welcomed several grandchildren with bliss, and continued to serve as a vocal trainer for decades. Over the years, the music enthusiast, woman of God, preacher, and entrepreneur was honored numerous times for her hard work, including her induction into the Worldwide Lifetime Achievement in 2015 and recognition as one of the Top Female Executives in 2012 and 2014. Rosalind had several other achievements, too, but what she loved most was that she was able to carry on her mother’s legacy in her own way for decades, often wearing some of her mother’s hats.
Unfortunately, Rozie passed away in Maryland on January 30, 2025, when she was 75 years old, leaving behind her husband, five children, 13 grandchildren, and other loved ones. The cause of her death is unclear as of writing, but Mary shared that it was a “sad” end to a beautiful life as she died “alone.” In an interview in November 2025, Mary Cosby told People, “When she got to the hospital, they said she went too long without oxygen to her brain.” Expressing her personal religious beliefs, she added, “So that means that she was alone for a long time. I just feel like how you live is how you leave. A very rough way to leave this earth… I just hope that she did everything that she was supposed to do with the Man upstairs so that she doesn’t have to be in the darker side of life for eternity. I don’t want that for anyone.”
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