Jane Crabtree Stark
Longtime Aquebogue resident Jane Crabtree Stark died March 14 after a short illness. She was 90.
Stark was the widow of Judge Thomas Stark, who predeceased her in 2014.
Stark was born in New York City and raised in Bronxville, N.Y.
A graduate of The Ursuline School and College of New Rochelle, she received a master of arts degree in English literature from State University of New York at Stony Brook. From 1981 to 1983, she was a lecturer at Suffolk County Community College.
After moving to Riverhead upon her marriage in 1954, Stark was involved in many local causes. She was active in the establishment of East End Arts in the years after its founding in 1972. In 1977, when Riverhead School District was operating under an austerity budget, she cofounded Riverhead Music Boosters to help support band, chorus and orchestra programs in the schools. She was a host and organizer for The Fresh Air Fund.
Early in her husband’s career, she was involved in his political campaigns for town and state offices.
A long-time member of North Fork Country Club, Stark was an avid golfer and bridge player. She enjoyed boating on Peconic Bay, gardening at her home in Aquebogue, the arts and attending theater, opera and ballet performances. Her family said she was known as a gracious and welcoming hostess and was enthusiastic about her grandchildren’s and nieces’ and nephews’ accomplishments.
Stark was a member of St. John’s parish where she served as a lector well into her 80s.
She is survived by her daughters, Elizabeth Stark Dugan of Chevy Chase, Md., and Ellen Gaynor Stark of New York City; sisters Judith Duffy of Bronxville, N.Y., and Claire Crabtree of Detroit, Mich.; and two grandchildren. Her sister Elizabeth Richard of Riverhead predeceased her.
A funeral Mass will be held Friday, March 20, at 1 p.m. at St. John the Evangelist R.C. Church in Riverhead. Tuthill-Mangano Funeral Home in Riverhead is handling the arrangements, but the family is not holding a public wake in light of the current public health situation.
Donations can be made in her name to the scholarship fund at The Ursuline School in New Rochelle, N.Y. via ursulinenewrochelle.org/JaneCrabtreeStarkMemorial or by mail at The Ursuline School, 1354 North Ave., New Rochelle, NY 10804.
This is a paid notice.
