Sam Minucci, better known as Uncle Mim, had a difficult life with his wife. She was not faithful and eventually they separated and got divorced. After leaving his wife, he came to live with us. He took over my very small middle bedroom and myself, and my 2 brothers shared the one othe bedroom. It was quite crowded but we survived. Eventually, he left and bought a home which he shared with his son Sammy.
When I remember Uncle Neil, he lived in Woodbridge and was a carpenter. He was a man of few words. The strangest thing was his weekend visits to his parents house in Port Reading. He would come and sit on the front porch and start smoking. He never went inside, he never rang the bell or let anyone know he was there. He just sat and smoked for hours. Many times someone would realize he was there and come out but other times he just came and left without interacting with anyone. It was that strange.
I vividly remember the phrase “right right says Carmen” as it was used by kids when referring to Carmen. Carmen was the youngest son of Fiore and Maria Minucci and was severely retarded. I remember people saying that when he was born he could “fit in a shoe box” (another way of saying he was premature). The result was that he was a very difficult child. Continue reading
Recollections by Joe Ragucci (in conjunction with other discussions):
One of my vivid images of Marge was sitting next to the telephone in the kitchen talking quietly to her sister or one of her phone friends. The only place she ever went on her own was to her sisters who lived 4 blocks away. But even that was rare. The phone was her link to her world. My father would find out the lies she told to people and when he confronted her she would act as if she never said it. Continue reading
Conversation with Dominic Ragucci (recorded by Joe Ragucci):
Dom has begun to “sanitize” his memory of Marge based on her change of behavior during the last years of her life in Roosevelt Hospital Nursing Home. He now says “she wasn’t that bad” but that’s far from the truth. She was always a strange person. He admits that she was a “home-body”. He admits that it was always a challenge to get her to go anywhere. He remembers many times going to family events alone (or with his children) because she wouldn’t go. He never lied for her but said the truth that she didn’t want to go.
Dom remembers the next door neighbor knocking on the door one day when he came home asking if their child could have his ball back. When he confronted Marge she said she took it and put it down the cellar. She couldn’t stand kids (even her own children) playing near the house – even on the street. She would yell and chase them away. All the kids were afraid of her because she yelled and would steal their balls if it came near her.
Conversation with Mary R (recorded by Joe Ragucci):
As part of our conversation, I brought up Carmen since I was writing some of my recollections on his life. Mary reminded me that Carmen was very attached to Uncle Mim and was very angry when he married Louise. Carmen would try to go to visit him (since they only lived a few blocks away) but Louise would chase him away. Carmen got angry one day and came with a knife. She was frightened and called the police who arrested him. That’s how he ended up in Marlboro.