The
D'Agnolo Family
This is the obituary of Gloria D'Agnolo. She was the oldest child of Otto and Josephine. She had just recently joined the military before her death as well, but died at the age of 18. She was tragically killed in a malfunctioning elevator door. As a result, the family went into mourning as was the custom in Italy. Josephine wore black for a couple years, sometimes including a black veil over her face (Celeste). According to an interview with a woman from Italy, the mourning process usually lasts for about a year. However, the custom varies from region to region, sometimes meaning the mother or wife, will wear black for the rest of her life especially if it were the death of a husband. Wearing colors seemed disrespectful to the dead. Also, these customs do not apply to the men of the family. It is very gender specific since the man is seen as the head of the household and as a result, must be seen as strong and unemotional. Women, however, were suppose to openly mourn and lament (Sirman). It was also customary to board-up the house, which Josephine also did. Tragically, less than three years later, Josephine's husband also died in an automobile accident (below). As a result, my nonu, Louis and his brother, Roy, spent years in a sad, dark house. Luckily, Otto has set up a fund, or a type of life insurrance, to support his family if something should happen to him. However, it was bank managed and Josephine had a lot of problems understanding how she got paid. She did not understand the idea "of fluctuating value in stocks and varing payouts" (Brian). One of the many adjustments to the American way of life that was so hard on immigrants. What was also difficult is that they had little other family in the United States, and it was very uncustomary to speak to anyone outside of the family (Brian). "Especially in times of death, people turn to their families for support, not a stranger" (Sirman). As a result, the mourning process was very lonely when normally it would have included a lot of family and friends in Italy (Sirman).
This is the obtiuary of
Ottorino D'Agnolo, the reason my family is here today. It is in
Italian, but has a bit of "Foulong" in it. Foulong is the regional
dialect of Fanna that has fallen into disuse as a result of mass media
(Brian).
Below is a translation of the obituary by my uncle Brian and with help
from my Nonu. It's a rough translation, but the gaps are not difficult
to fill in.
Sara scolpita nel nostro cuore la cara immagine di
Alla distansa di soli tre anni anche tu tragicamente incontravi la sorte che ti congiungeva alla tua cara figliola Gloria
Nellia furia della tempesta bramasti ritornare alla tua famiglia e per un disguido di tempo rimanesti proteso nell’ ansia non sensa lasciare alla tua sposa e ai tuoi figli il recordo della tua instancabile operosita.
Noi rassegnati, pieghiamo la fronte davanti ai voleri del Cielo.
Eri la nostra guida, sii ora la nostra luce, la nostra speranza e dai Cielo ottieni conforto e rassegnazione per la tua sposa e i tuoi ancor giovani figli guardino a te quale faro che dirige ed illumina.
I toui cari nel trigesimo (Both men were unable
to understand and free translations were unhelpful.)
Il tuo ricordo vive e sara nella memoria di quanti ti hanno conosciuto.