Enrico "Ric" Rosa

Enrico “Ric” Rosa, age 82, passed away at his home in Bluffton, South Carolina.

Ric was born in Marguerita di Savoia, province of Foggia, in the Puglia region of Italy, on October 27, 1943. He was born to the late Concetta and Pietro Rosa. He immigrated to the United States of America from Pozzallo, province of Ragusa, in Sicily, Italy, and became a United States citizen on June 25, 1965.

He graduated from Hackensack High School in Hackensack, New Jersey, and later received a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Newark College of Engineering (now New Jersey Institute of Technology), and his master’s degree in finance from Rutger’s University.

He leaves behind his children Keith Rosa (Jennifer) and Dawn Miller (Ty), and 6 grandchildren, Katherine (“Kate”), Abby, Aiden, Trent, Concetta (“Connie”), and Penelope (“Penny”), his sister Virginia “Gina” Tummino, sister-in-law Tina Rosa, and many nieces, nephews, and grand nieces and nephews. He is also survived by his ex-wife, Denise Killeen.

Ric worked at Avon in New York City, New York for 34 years. He retired to Bluffton, South Carolina in 2007, where he enjoyed working with his daughter Dawn at her business, the Bluffton School of Dance. Ric was a devout family man, who loved his kids, his grandkids, road trips, puzzles (especially Sudoku), jazz music, chess, and tinkering, fixing, and building just about anything. He had fond memories of his childhood growing up in Pozzallo, Sicily, and then in Hackensack, New Jersey. Ric was a cancer survivor, having successfully beaten a stage 4 melanoma diagnosis over fifteen years ago.

He is preceded in death by his son Craig Michael Rosa, his brother Salvatore Rosa (Tina), his brother Joseph Rosa (Carmela), and his brother-in-law John Tummino (Gina).

A wake will be held on December 12, 2025, from 4-7 p.m. at the G. Thomas Gentile Funeral Home in Hackensack, New Jersey. A private funeral for family will be held on December 13, 2025, at 10:30 a.m. at St. Joseph’s Cemetery in Hackensack, New Jersey.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Ric’s name to the American Melanoma Foundation.