Happy Mothers Day Mom

My mom Jean had the most challenging life imaginable. And yet she persevered regardless of “against all odds” situations. Born with an ear mastoiditis infection which could have been lethal in Mount Greenwood, Chicago she nearly died.

Then at about 8 or 9 years old endured severe body burns from a stove fire that put her in the hospital for over a month.

When my parents separated while living in Roseland, my mom got a job as a housekeeper and one night the wife shot the husband and Jean and the lady took the husband to the hospital and when I finally went downstairs into the kitchen it was filled with blood. At 6 yrs old I called the FBI. Lol

While living in Uptown, Chicago I was in about in third grade, she was kidnapped by the mob taken to Kansas City beaten & assaulted thinking she was the wife of Paul “Needlenose” Labriola whose $100,000 was never found and Paul was killed and stuffed in a vehicle trunk. They returned her about a week later and said if you go to the police we will kill the kid.

Now in about 7th grade and living in Hyde Park blocks from the Museum of Science & Industry, my mom suffered a nervous breakdown and had to get a hysterectomy. She was in an institution for about 10 months and I had to stay with foster families.

Moving up a a few years as a freshman/sophomore at Fenger HS Jean was suffering intensely that she attempted to take her life more than once and was thus institutionalized for about another year. For years mom thought the mob was surveillancing her with cameras in the walls and people following her. I was still an altar boy so I said let’s pray Mom and within a few weeks she realized it wasn’t the mob terrorizing her it was the, DEVIL. Then for the rest of her life she was dedicated to praying and manically marking many items in the house with the name of Jesus. Like a shaman in a quest, ridding the world of the SCUM!

Finally just out of HS while my parents got back together briefly, my dad had coronary thrombosis and died of a heart attack on his way to the hospital from work at the Rock Island Railroad. Within days my mom seemed to snap out of her obsession and paranoia and woke up and became an intelligent, strong, sensitive, humorous and dedicated follower of Jesus. There might be another book coming about JEAN.

Love you Mom

Pictured mick at four years old with dad Mike smoke & expresso and Jean all dolled up. I believe we were at Aunt Josephines wedding to Frank Valenti. And Jean with granddaughter Maya in 1987.