Mother of 2 killed by car

The first time she parked on the street outside her Long Beach co-op building, it cost Kate Rose-Eichin her life.

Rose-Eichin, 37, was struck by a motorist as she got out of her car on Shore Road, between Lincoln and Franklin Boulevards, at about 4 p.m. on June 11, said City Manager Charles Theofan.

"The sad part is she has a spot in the garage of her building, but because work was being done there she couldn't get in, and parked on the street," Theofan said. "Talk about the irony. And as she was getting out of her car, the other vehicle just

[hit] her."

Suffering from traumatic arrest, Rose-Eichin was transported to the Long Beach Medical Center, where she was soon pronounced dead.

The motorist, Linda Pitigiano, 57, of Shore Road, was not charged in the incident, although Theofan said that police ordered her to turn over her cell phone records in order for them to determine whether she was texting or talking while driving. "We're waiting for those, and there obviously was no alcohol or drugs involved, and for now it isn't being treated as anything other than an accident," he said.

Theofan noted that when he arrived at the accident scene, Pitigiano "obviously was very, very shaken and upset."

Rose-Eichin is survived by her husband, Eric Eichin, a New York City firefighter and a former Long Beach lifeguard, a 2-year-old son, Shea, and a 5-week-old daughter, Charlotte. Reached by phone on Wednesday, Eric was too distraught to talk about his wife.

According to Kate's mother, Karen Rose, before they started dating, Eric would see Kate on the beach near her co-op each morning from his lifeguard chair. "He used to watch her come out of her building and go for a swim," said Rose.

She said her daughter was at the pinnacle of her life, with children and a husband who she was "madly in love" with. The couple would have celebrated their fourth wedding anniversary on June 20.

"They had a happy, happy marriage and loved living in Long Beach," said Rose, noting that the couple were looking to buy a home in the city.

Rose-Eichin was described by family members and friends as a hard-working, honest, generous woman. She was a hair stylist and colorist for 16 years, working out of her home in recent years.

"She was a take-charge person and handled everything very efficiently, and she had a personal relationship with her clients that was way more than just doing hair," her mother said.

Rose-Eichin worked at Nial Martin Salon in Oceanside for seven years, where she had a loyal clientele. "I always said that she had the most beautiful blue eyes, and she never looked at you — she always looked inside you," said owner Debra Tinney. "She had a beautiful soul and always wanted to celebrate life."

"She was the most honest, giving person that ever lived," said her father, Daniel Rose. "And everybody loved her."

An estimated 500 people attended Rose-Eichin's funeral at Wellwood Cemetery in Pinelawn on Monday. "It's a terrible tragedy that's going to deeply affect our community and the people that knew this family well," Theofan said.

Donations can be made in Eichin's honor to: Hagedorn Cleft Palate and Craniofacial Center, North Shore LIJ Hospital, 225 Community Drive South Entrance, Great Neck, N.Y. 10021, (516) 466-2990; or the FDNY Burn Center, 21 Asch Loop, Bronx, N.Y. 10475, (718) 379-9900.

Comments about this story? JKellard@liherald.com or (516) 569-5000 ext. 213.