Mrs. Anna Maria Starace

Anna Maria Starace, 65, of Spring Hill, FL, passed away Wednesday, November 5, 2008, with her loving family by her side. Mary was born in Moca, Puerto Rico and came to this area 11 years ago from Long Island, NY. She was a Healthcare Supervisor and was of Catholic faith. Mary enjoyed knitting and cooking. She lived for Christmas, always in and out of the kitchen. Always inviting as many people as possible, family, friends, neighbors those without family and whoever was in need, she welcomed and embraced them all. Traditional family meals were her favorite, especially preserving the Puerto Rican tradition of making pasteles for everyone during Christmas. The hours were spent laughing and reminiscing. No matter her surroundings, her warm heart, friendly smile and outgoing demeanor made her a friend to all. Mary also enjoyed music; her passion was listening and dancing to her Salsa music. Mary and Tito were like the Ginger Rogers and Fred Astair of Latin Music. But above all Mary lived for her family. She took eminent pride in her children and their accomplishments and her grandchildren were the pride and joy of her life. Her laughter and joy for life will be missed by all those who knew and loved her. With her flair for making everything beautiful, my guess is she's making a path of rose petals so all of us will know where to find her. Mary was preceded in death by her parents, Rudolfo and Marciana Vega; her sister, Marta and her nephew, Junior. Survivors include her beloved husband of 32 years, Robert of Spring Hill, FL; her son, Anthony Starace; 2 daughters, Elizabeth Starace-Mulderig and Jacqueline Starace-White; 8 grandchildren, Joey, Brook, Nina, Daniella, Isa, Olivia, Julia and Shaun and by many loving nieces and nephews.