Rósa Hermannsdóttir, better known in the West as Rosa Vernon, grew up in a very cultural home, her parents Hermann Guðmundsson and Guðrún Snjólaug Jónsdóttir were known in Winnipeg Beach for singing. Their home was the center of musical life around the area. Rósa enjoyed the fact that many of her western cousins were known for their cultural activities, among them the poet Jóhann Magnús Bjarnason in Winnipeg. In her youth, she lived for a while in his home in the city. No doubt he put her in touch with a music teacher there because she started singing lessons as a child. During her studies, she worked for the Eaton’s retail chain. She attracted early attention for her singing, was a soloist in churches, sang on the radio and at gatherings in Manitoba. In 1929, Rósa moved to Toronto, where she continued to work at Eaton’s and studied music for six years at the Royal Conservatory of Music. After graduation, she gave concerts in Toronto and Winnipeg, often singing on the radio, both in Ontario and Manitoba. Along with singing, she started teaching and many young people learned singing at her home in Toronto.