Rosina J. Digilio Stark, age 103, a woman of remarkable vitality and longevity, passed away peacefully at Lahey Hospital-Burlington, MA on Saturday, February 7, 2026, following a brief illness. Rosina had been a longtime resident of Needham, MA, and resided the last eight years of her life as an active member of the Sunrise Senior Living community in Burlington, MA.

Born on October 7, 1922, Rosina was raised on her family’s farm on Baker Hill in Newbury, NH, a property well-known in the Lake Sunapee region that is now the Baker Hill Golf Club. As the first-born and only daughter of Italian immigrants Dominic and Joan Piro Digilio, she helped manage the farm alongside her five younger brothers (all of whom served in the U.S. military). Rosina graduated from Towle High School in Newport, NH and earned her bachelor’s degree in education from Keene State College in 1944. For decades, she and her beloved husband, Edward "Eddie" Stark, took great joy in returning to Keene State for many college reunions.

Rosina’s career in education spanned elementary schools across New Hampshire and New York, eventually leading her to St. Bartholomew Church in Needham where she taught kindergarten in the 1970s. However, her true heartbeat was music. A naturally gifted pianist (and harmonica player), Rosina spent a lifetime entertaining family and fellow Sunrise residents with her melodies. She could fill a room with music at a moment’s notice, playing tunes from memory. She was also a lifelong gardener who was well-known at Sunrise for her dedicated care of the outdoor flower pots, as she found great peace tending her favorite pansies and daisies while enjoying the birds at the feeders.

Rosina and Eddie were married for 65 years until his passing in 2015. Together, they lived a vibrant life in Needham since 1963, where they were active in the Needham Camera Club, the Pool & Racquet Club, Needham Senior Center, and the Boylston Schul-Verein (German club in Walpole, MA). Whether they were skiing, playing bridge, tennis, dancing, or traveling through Europe and Germany, they did so with a shared sense of adventure.

She is survived by her daughters Linda Stark of Salem, MA, and Deborah Stark and husband Joe Callanan of Freedom, NH; her brother, Richard Digilio of Newbury, NH; a sister-in-law Beverly Digilio of Newbury, NH; and a loving circle of nieces and nephews, spanning three generations. Besides her husband, she was predeceased by her brothers Carl, Robert, Dominic, and Joseph.

A memorial service will be held this spring in Meredith, NH. In lieu of flowers, donations may be gratefully made to the Keene State College Music Department (229 Main St., Keene, NH 03436; ref: Rosina Digilio Stark, Class of 1944). The family extends their deepest gratitude to the staff at Sunrise Senior Living for their compassionate care. She will be greatly missed by all.