Aunt Joanne was such a kind woman. We used to call her Big Red --
yes, because of her red hair; the “big” though came from her bigger than life
personality and her big heart. She was gentle, thoughtful, sensitive and
caring. She had a wicked sense of humor, and found joy and smiled and laughed
all the time.
I remember once when my mother was living in Port Richey, she
stopped by for a visit and my mom was out but on her way back home. Aunt Joanne
asked me if there was some coffee made, and if there wasn’t -- she told me
sweetly -- that when there was a guest over, I should make some. I was in my
early teens but gave it my best shot. How hard could it be? I had seen my mom
do it a thousand times. A couple of scoops of ground coffee from the can, a pot
full of water. Well it turned out so weak it was the color of light brown
water. “Oh my gawd,” she said and smiled and tried to dress it up and took a
sip and pretend that it was ok but it wasn’t. And so we poured it out and she
talked me through how to make a second, strong, real pot of coffee -- probably
my first. And there was an Entenmann's coffee cake close by -- and she coyly
said that she might just have a little piece.
I remember her Feast of Seven Fishes on Christmas Eve -- the care
she had obviously taken in prepping the meal and setting the table was
appreciated by me. It warmed my heart. She really was gentle, and kind, and
sensitive -- and even though her personality was larger than life, and her
smile could light up a room full of many people, she was soft, and thoughtful,
and happy. That’s how I remember my Aunt Joanne -- our Big Red. I loved her and
she will be missed.
In looking through her Facebook photos today, these are three that
really stood out for me.
From her Nephew, and published Author (obviously!) Dennis Petrone