News from Peru!

I have to say I'm really surprised by how much I've gotten out of my participation in Facebook.  I joined primarily to keep in touch with my high school classmates but the family connections have also been enhanced by this level of sharing.  It's an amazing world we live in.

Patty Ruska sent me the following through Facebook today about your cousin Jim's mission work in Peru: 
I don't know if any of our ancestors ever worked in missions, but Uncle Jim is just returning from a mission trip to Peru. I thought this may make for an interesting blog post :) Here's what he had to tell Colleen:

Colleen Ruska July 11 at 1:15pm
Uncle jim sent me this message from Peru....Just wanted to share it with yall. :-)

Found a blindingly slow internet conection here at the "hotel", at this point the cold showers fel good... and we hae real beds and flush toils.. We arrived in Nueovo Papaplaya on Monday afternoon after an 8.5 hour boat ride down river from Yurimaguas ) google that!. Just arrived back to Yuirmaguas this afternoon. What an adventure.... I have lots to to share, the boat ride in was surreal - like a disney or universal studios ride... only it was no amusement park. OK, tell your mother and Aunties I´m at least on my way home we leave at midnight on Sunday... I spend most of Monday traveling expct to be in Bethlehem around 8 pm. I need to go put anti-itch cream all over my body now.... Gnite! still have no cellphone connection so I´ll be off-line till monday... bye

And I agree that it makes a great blog post.   Jim said Google Nueovo Papa Laya so I did.  Here's a link to click for some additional info.  Wow!  See you soon.  I wish I knew how to say that in Peruvian.

Another elusive Coffarelli has been found!  This is truly an example of serendipitous fortune.  As often happens, I was looking for someone else when this newspaper article kind of fell into my lap.

Elizabeth is the third daughter of John and Rose Coffarelli--your grandfather James' sister.  I wasn't certain what happened to her after her brother died in 1934--she was listed as a surviving sister at that time.   I believe she lived at home with her father after her mother Rose died.  Since her older sisters married and moved away, I picture that she acted as the female head of the house.  She held a variety of jobs including "Flower Maker" and factory operator.  

This obituary tells me she never married.  I do not know where "Christine" came from but I have an old note from your house (probably a funeral card) that listed her death date and name as C. Elizabeth.  I don't know if she was visiting her nephew (sister Louise's son) or if she lived there, but you will note she was buried in Catskill Jefferson Heights.  This obituary also tells me that her other sisters Louise, Margaret and Theresa (the nun) survived her along with her brother Joseph.  So I can continue to look for Margaret after 1947.  

Elizabeth died at a fairly young age, as did several of the other Coffarellis (her mother, her brothers James and Phillip; her sister Mary), but now she is found and properly noted in our family tree.  When such a discovery falls into my lap the way this did, I wear my sparkly Genealogy Gem pin so people ask me what the pin means.  Then I can tell the story, because not everyone reads this blog to keep up on such news!!!

We are looking forward to the big weekend!  See you all soon.

Happy 4th of July!

Happy 4th!  I hope you are all enjoying the holiday weekend.  For the first time in several weeks, I feel like I have some actual downtime--the way it is supposed to be in the summer.  James took a trip to Nashville for a few days in preparation for his work as a tour guide for school groups.  Ryan's fallen into a pattern of some farm work in the mornings and Binghamton Mets stadium work in the evenings.  Amy is recovering from getting bonked with a set of elk antlers that fell out of a cupboard at the zoo.  How else would you spend a holiday weekend??

Pardon this country girl but I'm still trying to get the full picture of this Fire Island expedition.  When I was a kid, we just got in the car to go to the beach....who knew there were people in the world who got on a boat to get to the beach?!?!?  It should be a grand celebration of new babies Dylan and Miles; new graduates Amy Ryan and Drew; newly retired Bobbie and James....I've likely left someone or something out and I certainly don't mean to.  It will be great to see the Coffarelli cousins again!  It promises to be an historic family event.
This is what one of the recent reunions looked like:

1994

Be there or be square!!

Chapters in our lives

I must have been told a dozen times yesterday that high school graduation marks the start of a new chapter.  Indeed, this is true.  Congratulation Mallory, Drew and Ryan on your graduation and for making your parents so proud they don't know what to do with themselves. 

2010 indeed seems to have become a amjor turning point for the Dalpiaz clan.  We are blessed with new babies Miles and Dylan.  Amy has a job in her field in an economy that doesn't hold out much hope for such.  If I'm reading Facebook right, Brad has also landed a job in his field--our two recent college graduates.  James and Bobbie have decided to hang up their school keys.  Each household celebrates its own milestones along the way and another chapter begins. 

In order for a new chapter to begin, one has to end.  We have lost beloved family members, which often creates an opportunity to reacquaint ourselves with each other in a new light.  Even under these circumstances, we are very fortunate.  Very fortunate.  Bless you all.

Father's Day 2010

This Father's Day seems especially poignant this year.  The Dalpiaz clan is experiencing the absolute joy of welcoming Miles and Dylan to the world.  At the same time, Scott, Angela, Marguerite, Jimmy and Jean are dealing with the unique black hole created on the first holidays since the passing of their loved ones.

Of course, this joy and grief are shared by immediate and extended family members like the ripples on the pond when a pebble is dropped.  The ripples are deep and most pronounced at the center and fade as they widen but the affect the entire pond. 

So we welcome the new dads to the fold--Ron and Brian!  And we honor those whose legacy lives on in our other family dads Robert, James, Thomas, Steve, Scott, Bob, Jake, Jimmy, Bill.  Have a great day!

Gobsmacked

I don't really know what "Gobsmacked" means exactly but it sounds just right for how I have been feeling since James' concert. It was an amazing evening filled with love. Words truly escape me as they seem so very inadequate so I'll let pictures tell some of the story. I just didn't have the strength to lift my camera during Ryan's tribute to his dad, so that will just have to live on in the memories of those in attendance. For those of you that made the journey, we feel truly blessed. I'm so happy you were able to be there to bear witness to your parents' legacy.



Welcome to the world Dylan! You've been born into a wonderfully warm and loving family. Congratulations Monet and Brian. We can't wait to meet the newest Dalpiaz!

Storm Front Moving In

As I write this, a fast moving storm front is barreling through Broome County.  One minute the sun is shining and the next, leaves turn their backs in anticipation of the torrents of rain coming along in the next few moments.  And the blue sky returns.....for a bit. 

Welcome to my world lately.  Even under the circumstances, the weather seems more stable than day to day activities at 2682 Colesville Road recently!  It's a roller coaster ride but we're enjoying it immensely.  I suspect many of you are also on a similar ride these days, so I'll just post some catch up news for you to enjoy on your own schedule. 

Ryan left for his senior trip early this morning.  They have renewed a Harpursville tradition by going to Washington DC for their trip.  James is currently sitting in the SNY box at Citifield and he's in heaven as you can imagine.  I was left here to deal with the storm front, but that's OK.........

Friday was our annual end of year celebration fondly known as Moving Up Day (or MUD--a terrible acronym to use).  James was honored at the high school assembly with a slideshow presentation and yearbook dedication.  The middle school yearbook was also dedicated to him!  I don't believe the same person has ever been awarded both yearbook dedications.  He was very touched and so were the students and teachers.  It was a grand tribute.  James was gracious and your parents would have burst with pride.

Moving Up Day also brings some end of year awards to the seniors.  I'm tearing up writing this as it is a great honor that Ryan was named the male Babe Ruth Award winner.  This award is chosen by the staff to acknowledge one senior boy and one senior girl and I'll let the certificate describe it for you:

It's a great honor and tribute to his time as a Harpursville student.  He often wondered why he rarely received other sorts of recognitions along the way and I hoped someday he would learn that it's those little steps along the way that build up to the big overall picture.  This was a great affirmation of that philosophy. 

Amy LOVES her job and it's a great relief that she is employed at all and that she seems happy in Erie PA.  She hosted breakfast with the orangutans, passed the test (whatever this could be) to handle hissing cockroaches, and fed the giraffes.  It was a challenge getting her there and set up but it's working out for her too. 

I've been buffeted around by these winds of change and so far have been able to land on my feet to face the next round!  I hope the same especially for those of you with graduates in the house, those of you with new babies to hug, those of you with retirement to celebrate and those of you celebrating the end of the school year for yourselves and for your children!