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History...
Branches of the Tree...
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Mary"Marrying a man is like buying something you've been
admiring for a long time in a shop window. You may love it when you get it home,
The following are excerpts from a letter written by Lucy (seated, center) to Irene, dated May 26, 1992. ... My sister, Anita, and I quite often went with our mother to Grandma’s house at 317 Fargo Ave. The Lucchino sisters and their children all went to Grandma’ house, mostly on Sundays. The adults would play cards upstairs at Grandma’s, and we children would play cards downstairs where Aunt Carmel and Uncle Joe lived with their four daughters. Grandma had a butler’s pantry off of her kitchen. We kids would go in and help ourselves to the homemade bread and the cream cheese. Grandpa bought 5 lbs. of cream cheese, which was packed in a long wooden box. This cheese was sooo good. I remember going to Grandma’s on Easter Sunday when I was a small child. I would kiss Grandma’s hand and Grandpa’s hand, and they would give me some change. That was the custom, and all the grandchildren and Grandma’s children would do this. Then I would go downstairs to see Aunt Carmel and Uncle Joe. Uncle Joe would get down on his hands and knees and give me a piggyback ride. I remember sitting at Grandma’s kitchen table with Aunt Rae, while Aunt Rae was still at home, saying the "Hail Mary" prayers. We would have to say 4,000 Hail Mary’s, starting at the beginning of Advent and finishing on Christmas Eve. Would you believe we still do this, Aunt Rae and I?! It is called a "novena." [Editor’s note: "Novena" comes from the Latin "novem" meaning "nine"; originally, prayers were repeated for nine consecutive days.] I remember when I was working at the American Palace Laundry, which was a few blocks down from Grandma’s on Fargo Ave. One year we had a terrible snow storm; I think it was in 1935. The city was at a standstill. We had street cars at that time, and they didn’t run for about a week. I lived on Swan St. and had no way to get to work, so I stayed with Grandma and Grandpa. Aunt Anna and Irene and Rita were living with Grandma then. Aunt Anna worked at the Laundry and that is how I got my job. I remember the roses and the pear tree in the backyard on Fargo Ave. I also remember that Grandpa invented some kind of hand soap which was packed in a can. Frank could tell you more about this. When we kids got a little older, we still went to Grandma’s with our parents. Our parents would allow us to go to the show; I think it was on Connecticut St. I remember when I was about 17, I lived on Swan St. and we had a grocery store. Uncle Joe came with one of his buddies to see us. Before he left, he kissed my sister and I good-bye. That same night he had the auto accident and died about 3 weeks later. This is a prayer that Aunt Angeline wrote:
My Prayer by Mrs. Marie Angeline Polichette Douglas To You my God, I give my thanks, as on my knees I pray,
Of course, everyone knows that the sisters - Theresa, Mary, Anna and Rachel - were all very talented with their knitting and crocheting, and also all very good cooks. Sincerely with love, Lucy
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