Dorothy Ragnetti (nee Stapleton) of Glenwood, N.J., passed away at Friedwalde Center in New City, N.Y., on Friday, Oct. 16, 2020. She was 83.
She was born to James and Ellen Stapleton in Brooklyn, N.Y., where she lived until moving to Glenwood in 1975.
The beginning of the love story between Dorothy and her husband, Paul, began almost from birth. They were born 12 days apart in the same hospital and lived just blocks away from each other until they met at a park in Brooklyn when they were 14. They married at 20 and spent every minute together in love, becoming one heart and one mind.
Dorothy was a dedicated homemaker, she had worked as an Assistant Librarian at Lounsberry Hollow School in Vernon Township, N.J., and was a parishioner of St. Stanislaus Roman Catholic Church in Pine Island, N.Y., for many years.
She was an avid New York Yankee fan and took great joy in reading. To the amazement of her grandchildren, Dorothy became very internet savvy on her smartphone. Dorothy would always say her favorite days are those spent with her grandchildren, with whom she could never get enough time. She relished the holidays when they would all be together laughing and just enjoying each other.
Dorothy is predeceased by her granddaughter, Lisa Hearn, in 2006, and was the beloved wife for 63 years of Paul Ragnetti of Glenwood.
She was the devoted mother of Paul A. Ragnetti and his wife, Cathy, of Sparta, N.J., Laura Klee and her husband, Keith, of Howell, Mich., David Ragnetti and his wife, Colleen, of Wantage Township, N.J., and Carol Ramage-Franke and her husband, David, of Hewitt, N.J. She was the dear sister of Eileen Palmieri of Newfoundland, Pa., and was cherished by 11 grandchildren and one great-granddaughter.
The family will receive their friends at Ferguson-Vernon Funeral Home, 241 Route 94, Vernon, N.J., on Tuesday, Oct. 20, from 2-4 and 7-9 p.m. A short service will be held at the funeral home on Wednesday, Oct. 21, at 9:30 a.m. followed by a mass at St. Francis de Sales Roman Catholic Church, Vernon, at 10:30 a.m. Interment will be private.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to Make-A-Wish New Jersey, 1347 Perrineville Road, Monroe Township, NJ 08831; or to your favorite charity.