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Born in Monson, MA, to parents Napoleon Paul and Mary Rose Brisard, Rosemary graduated from Monson Academy and then attended American International College and Hartford Academy of Design. In the early 1970’s Rosemary and her late husband Edmund J. Hughes II, moved to St. Petersburg to open an advertising agency E. J. Hughes Company, where she would serve as his bookkeeper until his death in 1995.

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Rosemary’s contributions to the community of St. Petersburg were many, driven by her love of children and the performing arts. In the early 1980s while producing several shows like Gypsy, Anything Goes, and Brigadoon at the St. Pete Little Theater (now St. Petersburg City Theater), she sat on the board of two (2) significant children's performing arts programs, Sunshine Kids in Production (SKIP) and Suncoast Theater Artists in Review (STAR). In 1982 Rosemary and her late husband founded The Commercial Kids & Co., a children’s music theater group that toured across Florida and performed annually at Walt Disney World. In 1984 she purchased the Baynard Thompson Funeral Home at 770 4th Avenue North, and opened the Florida Performing Arts Studio (FPAS) launching the newest community theater downtown, showcasing classics like Company, Three Penny Opera, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum and Carnival. This building served as rehearsal space for the Commercial Kids & Co., and classes in acting, dance, voice were offered to children of all ages. Rosemary also offered a theatrical summer camps, in which kids were taught how to audition for, produce and and put on a Broadway style musical. The St. Petersburg Chamber of Commerce recognized the FPAS as the best theatrical training facility in the State of Florida.

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In the late 1980s, Rosemary transformed the Golden Apple Dinner Theater on Central Avenue into The Encore Dinner Theater. Professional productions of Chicago, My Fair Lady, Barnum, Annie, Dames At Sea, 42nd Street, Evita, and A Chorus Line were added to her “Executive Producer” resume.

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Throughout the 1990s, Rosemary owned and operated a retail store called “Rosemary’s Antiques and Collectibles,” and "Rosemary's Point of View," providing furnishings and decorating  She also served for several non-profit organizations and chaired numerous fundraising events for The Stuart Society (Museum of Fine Arts), The Heart Association, CASA, Bayfront Medical Center, All Children’s Hospital (now John’s Hopkins), and the St. Petersburg Centennial Celebration. In 2010 Rosemary was awarded a key to the City for her outstanding contributions to the community. She was an active member of the St. Petersburg Yacht Club, held several board positions on the SPYC Women’s Club, and played bridge and mahjong weekly until 2015.

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Rosemary's family includes her husband - Jim Johnson; daughter - Kim Hughes Ellis; son – Steve Martel; stepdaughter – Traci Johnson (husband Alan Wrong); four stepsons – Scott Johnson (wife Kim), David Johnson, Ed Hughes III (wife Didi), Jeff Hughes; and her grandchildren – Jack Johnson, Kate “L” Johnson, Emily Wrong, Rebecca Reed (husband Zach), Jessica Higgins (husband Adam), Edmund Hughes IV (wife Kassandra), Bryan Hughes, Tyler Hughes (wife Hailey); and great-grandchildren – Zachary Reed II, Scarlet Reed, Nixon Hughes, and Ed Hughes V.