Enlow Ose, noted Sacramento developer and philanthropist, dies at 96

Enlow Ose, a Sacramento developer who became one of the region’s most influential philanthropists, died Thursday at his Sacramento home. He was 96.

Ose and his wife, Melena Adams Ose, donated millions of dollars over the years to charitable and educational organizations in Sacramento and elsewhere following a successful career as a real estate broker, developer and investor.

An avid traveler who visited all seven continents with his wife, Ose was an active camper and hiker and a lifelong bridge player who continued playing competitive bridge up until his death.

“His passion in his later years was mostly bridge,” said his daughter Mary. “He loved to play bridge and he was an extremely valued member of the local competitive bridge community.

“They all just loved it when they got to play against him.”

Ose and his wife also were responsible for some of the largest philanthropic efforts in Sacramento, including a $10 million contribution in 2006 to help expand Sutter Medical Center’s midtown hospital and create the Ose Adams Medical Pavilion.

Ose also secured the donation of a 5-acre site in 1990 to serve as the home of KVIE, Sacramento’s public television station, and donated $250,000 to the building project. Other Ose beneficiaries have included the Sacramento Region Community Foundation, Crocker Art Museum, McGeorge Law School and Capital Public Radio.

“He loved Sacramento,” Mary Ose said. “This was his home. This was where he and my mom raised their family, and it was a very special place for him.

“He did so much to give back to the community that had given him so much.”

Enlow Arlo Ose was born in Zearing, Iowa, July 30, 1924, and grew up on farms in central Iowa, his family said.

He enrolled at Iowa State University in 1942, where he met his future wife and became engaged to her after their first date in 1946, said Melena Ose, his wife of 73 years.

He enlisted in the Navy in 1943, then returned to Iowa State and graduated with two engineering degrees in 1947, his family said.

Ose went to work for General Motors as an engineer in Indiana, and moved to Sacramento in 1955 to begin a job as a real estate salesman for Coldwell Banker and Co., now known as CBRE Group.

Ose struck out on his own five years later, forging a successful career developing homes, apartments, office buildings and other projects and serving on the boards of area non-profit organizations.

“He had a regular poker game with friends,” the family wrote in a remembrance of him. “He was active for many years in the Sacramento Rotary Club, the Sacramento Packet Mariners of Fremont Presbyterian Church, the Sutter Club, and the Grandfather’s Club.”

In addition to his wife and daughter Mary, Ose is survived by daughters Margie and Susan and son Doug, a former member of the U.S. House of Representatives; five grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.

No services are planned because of the coronavirus pandemic. Contributions in his memory may be made to the Sacramento Region Community Foundation or Sutter Medical Foundation.