Rita M. Ferreira

Portsmouth, RI - Rita Marie Ferreira, 63, of 33 Sherman Avenue, Portsmouth, RI, died Monday, January 3, 2011 at St. Lucy Medical Center, Port St. Lucie, FL. Born in Newport, RI on June 1, 1947, she was the daughter of the late Micheal Babe and Mary Wolf DeCotis.Rita was a long time resident of Newport before moving to Portsmouth in 1983, where she made her home. She was a long time employee of Brooks Pharmacy in Newport, and later worked for 20 years as a support contractor with various companies at the Naval Undersea Warfare Center in Newport. For the last 2 years she worked for All About Home Care as a caregiver and cherished her clients as if they were family. Rita always made her home comfortable for all who entered, with her welcoming smile, fun spirit and generosity. She made friends easily and often her friends became friends with each other. Rita was incredibly devoted to her entire family whether local or distant and always kept in touch and was never short on words if they needed to be kept in line with a loving hand.Rita enjoyed her many pets over the years, especially Elvis and Priscilla as well as her Pot Belly Pig, Felize. She loved her bus trips to various places. Especially the Yearly Italian Festival in New York City with her brother Joseph as well as friends and other family members. Her favorite vacations were to Port St. Lucie, Florida to visit her Little Guy, Joey. Rita grabbed on to life with both hands and always made the best of what fate handed her. Her outlook on life, her strength, the twinkle in her blue eyes and beautiful smile is something we all will miss, but carry with us forever. She is survived by her sons Joseph M. Ferreira and Robert Ferreira, both of Port St. Lucie, FL, and her daughter Deborah Gatta of Portsmouth, RI, a brother Joseph DeCotis of North Attleboro, MA, and her grandchildren, AJ Gatta, Kristina Gatta, Michaela Gatta, Joey Ferreira, Francesca Ferreira, Michael Ferreira, and Amaraya Ferreira. Rita also had many others close in her heart that considered her Mom and Grandma.Calling hours will be held on Friday, January 7, 2011, from 4:00-7:00pm in the Memorial Funeral Home, 375 Broadway, Newport, RI.Her funeral will be held on Saturday, January 8, 2011, at 10:00AM, from the Memorial Funeral Home, with a Mass of Christian Burial at 11:00AM, in St. Barnabas Church, 1697 East Main Road, Portsmouth. A private burial will take place in Trinity Cemetery in Portsmouth.Memorial donations may be made to the Robert Potter League for Animals, PO Box 412, Newport, RI 02840.