Josephine Guidetti

Josephine (Rago) Guidetti died peacefully in her sleep in the company of her daughter Barbara (McLaren) Bissig on the morning of January 22, 2026, in Maryville, Tennessee, where she had been living since October 2024.

Josephine was born on September 19, 1930, to Joseph and Philomena Rago. She led a long productive and happy life of over 95 years. Josephine was born and raised in Lyndhurst, N.J., and attended public school through her graduation from Lyndhurst High School in 1947. She lived for many years with her family in Rutherford, New Jersey. In her later years Josephine resided in Clifton, New Jersey, before moving to assisted living at Morning View Village in Maryville, Tennessee, in October 2024.

Josephine was predeceased by her first husband, Robert McLaren (married 1950, died June 21, 1954), and her second husband, Raphael J. Guidetti (married November 9, 1957, died February 17, 2000). Josephine was predeceased by her parents Joseph Rago and Philomena (Senna) Rago and her siblings, Rose, Rocco, George, Edward and Pat. In addition to her children Barbara and Joseph, she is survived by her son-in-law Tom Bissig, her grandson Jonathan Scofield, his wife, Jessica and their children, Elias, Samuel and Molly; and her granddaughter Kate (Scofield) Borders, her husband, Chris, and their children, Jazmine and Nadra.

After graduating high school, Josephine attended secretarial school and following many years in the workforce, she returned to school and earned an Associate of Arts degree from Bergen Community College. For most of her professional career, Josephine worked as an administrative assistant and bookkeeper for companies including auto dealers, interior design, travel agencies, CPA firms, as well as the U.S. Post Office. She retired from the workforce after a long career at the Rutherford Board of Education as Assistant to the Board Secretary.

Josephine was known as "The Energizer Bunny" to her family and friends, always on the go and doing as much as possible each day. She played on various volleyball and bowling leagues, was involved in various AARP clubs, a member of the Rutherford Garden Club as well as The Red Hat Society. Josephine loved to cook and bake and was famous for her crumb cake and eggplant parmigiana. She loved to travel, but her fondest passions were movies and theater. She introduced multiple generations of her family and friends to live theater on Broadway and was known to catch multiple movies at local cinemas in a single day. She enjoyed family time with her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren whether playing games, working on puzzles or just sitting at the table telling jokes.

During her life Josephine was a member of Sacred Heart Church in Lyndhurst, Saint Mary's in Rutherford and Saint Philip's in Clifton. Josephine is absent from her body and present with the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:8).

Friends and family will be received on Monday, February 16, 2026 at Ippolito-Stellato Funeral Home, 425 Ridge Road, Lyndhurst 2-4 & 6-8 PM. Funeral Service Tuesday, February 17 at 10:30 at the funeral home prior to burial at Hillside Cemetery, Lyndhurst.

In lieu of flowers, friends and family may make donations in her memory to World Orphans at www.worldorphans.org or Plays of Wilton at www.playsofwilton.com.