Rosa Rasiel

Rosa was born on July 20, 1935 to Leon and Sarah (née Stein) Rosenbloom. She and her sister, Naomi, were raised among countless Rosenbloom and Stein cousins in Baltimore, MD. Both girls attended the Park School, where Rosa was a star pupil and a voracious reader. Rosa continued to impress literature professors at Radcliffe College, from which she was graduated magna cum laude in 1956. Rosa remained closely involved with Radcliffe throughout her life as both an active leader in alumni affairs and a generous patron of the College. Many of Rosa's closest friends were Radcliffe women whom she had known for over sixty years.

A gifted writer, Rosa moved to New York after college for an internship at Vogue Magazine, where she lived and worked with another Vogue intern: Joan Didion. While in New York, Rosa did graduate work in English literature at Columbia University and met Amram (Ami) Rasiel, a young engineer from Tel Aviv who would soon become her husband.

With two young sons, David and Ethan, in tow, Rosa and Ami eventually settled in Marblehead, Massachusetts, in a house by the sea where Rosa would live for the rest of her life. As the family established roots on the North Shore, Rosa's passion for writing remained. She was a frequent correspondent for the Jewish Journal of the North Shore and was the co-author, with Roberta Kalechofsky, of The Jewish Vegetarian Year Cookbook. She was also active in local Jewish and civic organizations, including Hadassah, Salem Hospital, and the North Shore Jewish Community Center, and was a generous supporter of Temple Sinai in Marblehead. Rosa leaves behind her sons, David (Deborah) and Ethan (Emma); her five grandchildren, Lee, Annie, Jack, Jessica, and Talia; her sister Naomi; and many friends, who will remember her incisive wit, her critical eye, her delicious cooking, and her gentle soul.

Services at Temple Sinai, 1 Community Rd., Marblehead, on Thursday at 1:00 PM followed by interment at Temple Sinai Cemetery, Danvers.

Shiva and Minyan will take place virtually on Zoom. Shiva will be from 5:00PM to 7:00PM on Thursday with Minyan service at 6:00PM. Friday people are invited for a virtual Shabbat service at Temple Sinai at 7:10PM. Shiva will continue over Zoom on Sunday from 2:00PM to 4:00PM with Minyan service at 3:00PM. Expressions of sympathy may be sent to Hadassah New England, 1320 Centre Street Suite 205 Newton Centre MA 02459, Cardinal Cushing Centers, https://cushingcenters.org/ or Combined Jewish Philanthropies https://www.cjp.org.