Rita E. Rago

Rita Rago passed away from this life on the morning of November 17th after a short hospital stay. She was the beloved wife of the late Thomas Rago for almost 40 years, the daughter of the late Veronica and James Dopman, and sister to Virginia Busch, Veronica Brady, the late Dorothy Stockberger, Mary Mazza, Marcy Strub, and William Dopman. Rita was also the stepmother-in-law to Janet Andrews and step son-in-law to Thomas Rago, Jr., numerous nieces and nephews, and was the beloved grandmother, and great grandmother to her extended Rago family.

Rita was born in New Hyde Park, Long Island, New York and graduated from Sewanhaka High School where she was a varsity cheerleader. As an adult she enjoyed her work experience as Office Manager with Metropolitan Life Insurance Company. She loved to travel, but her most cherished possessions were her large families. Rita was very active in her Covered Bridge community where she helped run the weekly Bingo, participated in water aerobics, and was a champion for everyone in her Holyoke Court community. For the folks who were “snowbirds” in the court, Rita took charge and made sure everything was taken care of while they were away.

From her granddaughter and God child: “She was our beloved grandmother, great-grandmother & godmother. Her infectious laughter & unconditional love were a constant source of joy for all who knew her. We will forever keep her in our hearts.”

From a co-worker and friend for 35 years: “Dear Rita, Today is my chance to thank you for your friendship. Thank you for being there when I needed a shoulder to lean on. Now that you are gone, I’m already missing you, but I will remind myself that this separation is temporary. I will always cherish the memories we had together.”

From her brother: “Janice and I were with Rita in her final days. Growing up, I was the pesky little brother who used to tease her. Knowing she was afraid of bugs, I would chase her around the house with a closed fist making believe I had a bug and she would run off screaming! Rita did love to travel and Janice and I were so happy when she agreed to go with us for two weeks touring France. Speaking for all my sisters, we loved her tremendously and will miss her even more.”

A heartfelt thank you goes out to all her friends and neighbors at Covered Bridge for all the calls, texts, and visits that were made during Rita’s final days. The outpouring of your love for Rita was truly remarkable and made a very difficult time a little bit easier. Our appreciation also goes out to Thomas Henry Rago who flew down from Connecticut for 24 hours so that Rita would not be alone.

As you can see, Rita was loved by many people throughout her life. We will all miss her and our love for her will never diminish!