Rose Lillian Plaza

June 18, 1934 - February 1, 2020

Rose Lillian (Zapata) Plaza, 85, of Stoneham, died Saturday, February 1, 2020 at her home. Born in Boston on June 18, 1934, she was the daughter of the late Ricardo and Rose (Scaperotti) Zapata. She was raised and educated in the North End and was a graduate of Julie Billiart Central High School. Until the time of her retirement, she was employed as a receptionist at the North End Community Health Center. Rose loved to attend Church, Bible Study, and share Gods plan of salvation with everyone she met. Her love for God was evident to her family especially her grandchildren who she enjoyed spending much of her time with. Spending countless hours with each of them filled her heart with joy. Sharing the gospel with them was extremely important to her. Having them understand God’s plan for their life was her mission. Rose loved life and never failed in placing Jesus Christ at the center of everything she did. Rose trusted Christ as her Lord and Savior. She leaves this legacy to her family and friends and all that knew her. Rose was the loving mother and mother-in-law of Charles and Jennifer Plaza of Danvers, Debbie and Charles Papillo of Vermont, and Caroline and Joseph Colarusso of Stoneham, grandmother of Charles, Stefanie, Anthony, Joseph, Richard, Kylie, McKenzie, Cody, and Brady, great-grandmother of Rose Grace, sister of Josephine “Chickie” Danieli of Boston and the late Fernando “Sonny” Zapata, and former wife of Carlos Plaza of Puerto Rico. A service celebrating Rose’s life will be Wednesday, February 5, 2020 at 6PM in the Hope Christian Church, 58 Mt. Vernon St., Winchester. Relatives and friends are invited. Burial in Woodlawn Cemetery will be private. As requested, there are no visiting hours. In lieu of flowers, donations in Rose’s name may be made to a special pro-life charity, the Boston Center for Pregnancy Choices, 120 Lincoln St., Suite 1-A, Boston, MA 02111. For directions or to leave a condolence, please visit www.LyonsFuneral.com.