The Huck-Pac Fundraiser

 OK, it's time for me to vent. I received this today in the mail from Mike Huckabee. I'm sure you all remember who he is. I like him, but lately, he's been inundating my mailbox with stuff like this. I'm sure some of you have received it, as well. 

A six page letter was inside with a request to fund Huck-Pac. I have a problem with this, because just about every Republican & some Democrats have written to me how much money they need to fund the Election this November. Each one tells me that the other Party has out-raised them! It's crazy, isn't it?

A major problem is that George Soros is funding a lot of what the Democrats are doing. What I find so disturbing is that George Soros has been thrown out of his own home country of Hungary, for interfering with their elections; why can't we throw him out of America for interfering in our Elections! It's becoming absurd with all the groups he funds to protest whatever agenda the Dems want them to protest for! 

What upsets me even more, is that the Republicans don't stand up to the Dems, like they said they would, when they won the majority in the House. This has been going on as far back as I can remember. They make a lot of promises, but they don't deliver on them. They've been impeaching Biden for 15 months now, and he still isn't impeached yet! What are they waiting for? The Dems started impeaching Trump before he was even elected President! 

Our country is in a very bad position right now, because of the Deep State and the cast of characters who go along with them.  While prayer is very much needed, what's also needed is for Republicans to stand by their promises and deliver on them. If they don't, then America will not be the country we enjoyed as kids. 

 

July 13, 1964

This day holds a very special memory in my life..

Fifty-nine years ago, God had put some special people in my life.

This story actually begins back in November of 1956, when I had

my tonsils and adenoids removed, because they were very swollen,

making it difficult to breathe & eat. I was just about 2 ½ years old. 

That was then. A few months later, I found myself making trips,

with my Mom,  to the Speech & Hearing Clinic, which was on Park

Avenue here in Bridgeport, at the time. I wasn’t talking too much

yet, and when I did, it was hard for others to understand what I

was saying. They also found that I had a hearing deficit in my left

ear. It was not a good time in my life-to say the least. Little did I

know that it was about to get more difficult when I entered school.The visits to the S&H Clinic continued for three more years. 

We lived in Trumbull at the time, and they did not have kindergarten.

I entered the first grade in September of 1960. I was still making

trips to the S&H Clinic, being excused early from school to attend

my sessions. I loved learning, but I didn’t like the kids who made

fun of me when I talked. It was very hard to understand why they

would do that, when I tried so hard to make friends with everyone.

At age 6, it’s hard to understand anything out of the ordinary. At

this point, I wondered whether the intense speech therapy was

really doing me any good. They really didn’t know what had caused

my speech impediment. They just chalked it up as a birth defect;

the same for the hearing deficit. 

In the Spring of ‘62, on a glorious May 5th morning,

I received our Lord for the very first time, along with my cousin

Judy, at St. Teresa’s Parish! Little did I know that 19 years later,

I would be teaching religion to children with special needs,

at this same parish! During this time, some good news,

I would no longer have to go to the S&H clinic because the

Trumbull School System was offering speech therapy right

in the school! 

A year later, I received a visitor at school. His name was

Mr. Kostopoulis, who was a Speech Pathologist. Of course,

I could not pronounce his name, so he told me to call him Mr. K.I had no idea who this man was, or why he came to visit me. I now

think of him as a special angel, because he led me to a doctor who

was able to help me. He asked if he could examine me. I looked at

Mr. Hofactor, the Principal, who had introduced Mr. K to me, and

he nodded that it was alright for me to go with Mr. K to the nurse’s

office. He then put a tongue depressor in my mouth, saying a lot of

“a ha’s.” After he was done, he told me that he knew of a doctor in

New Haven who was doing a procedure that he was sure could help

my speech impediment. He asked me if I would go to visit the

doctor. I told him he would have to talk to my parents, which he did.

I don’t remember exactly when we made the visit, but it was very

much like going to the S&H Clinic, with audiograms, and the taping

of my voice-lots of taping of my voice. This went on for almost a

year. 

Speech therapy continued in school. I lost my Grandmother Maria

on my 9th birthday.  I used to enjoy visiting her with my Dad who

would teach me to talk in Italian to her.. She had suffered a stroke

three years before, and was bedridden. She then came down with

pneumonia and passed away. 

By this time, Beatle songs were playing on the radio, and my speech

therapist, Mrs. Watnick asked me if I liked their music. I told her

yes, I did, I sang their songs a lot. She said good, you can practice

your speech therapy while singing their songs! 

Meanwhile, back at Dr. Howard Smith’s office, after having run

a battery of tests on me, found nothing new that we didn’t already

know-everything was a birth defect. My uvula was very short, making

sounds come out through the nose, instead of the mouth. All the

speech therapy in the world would not help, unless I had the

operation. Yes, I had to have a 5 ½ hour operation. What was he

going to do during that time? He was going to skin-graft the roof

of my mouth, and attach the skin to the uvula to make it longer!

This was not something I wanted to hear. This was a relatively new

procedure, so I did a lot of praying, because it was a bit scary, to

say the least. 

It’s the Summer of ‘64, July 12th, my parents are driving me to

Grace New Haven Hospital, (now Yale) and Dionne Warwick is singing

“Walk on By.” on the radio. I wanted to “walk on out”, as we were

approaching the hospital. After all, the next morning, I would be

going under the knife, having the roof of my mouth skin-grafted. It

would make any one a little squeamish. 

I didn’t get much sleep that night; all I could think about was the

operation. I had just turned 10 years old, just 17 days prior. I was

not going to be able to talk for a whole week.(Those of you who know

me, You could imagine how hard that was for me!)  I had to write

everything down on a pad. (No computers or Iphones back then) 

When I woke up, my arm was wrapped up tethered to a board, with

hoses hanging on it. I was being fed intravenously. They didn’t tell

me about that. I thought I broke my arm! My Aunt Florence & Aunt

Antoinette were there with my uncles. Mom & Dad were there, too.

My siblings I didn’t get to see for a week; they were staying with

Grandma Helen & Grandpa Nick. 

Communicating was a pain, having to write everything I wanted to say

on the pad. I was given lots of ice cream, applesauce, jello, and any

other soft foods they could give me. I got to do some Arts & Crafts,

with the other kids who were in the same wing as I was. I remember

making a jewelry box out of a cigar box, spray painting it gold, and

decorating it with shell macaroni. It came out pretty nice. I had

quite a few visitors, which made the week go by fast. Going home was

great, but there was more intense speech therapy waiting for me to

do. My sister turned 9 on July 31st, so we celebrated that. My Aunt

Florence called to tell me she was going to have a picnic-party for me

at her house. She invited the whole family; even some of my Dad’s

cousins came!

Life went on as usual. Fifth grade was a bad year. I won’t go into the

details. I had to repeat the 5th grade, due to the mitigating circum-

stances that made this almost the worst year of my life. I survived

it though, with the help of God. 

This story has a unique ending. I had always thought, in the back of

my mind, my impediments were not birth defects. I asked God to tell

me the truth when He thought I could handle it. He did just that. 

Fast-forward to 2017, when I was having trouble swallowing. They

tried to do some esophageal tests, where I had to drink some very

thick stuff, which made me aspirate. So I failed that test. They

decided to do a 3-D ultrasound, which revealed some surprising

evidence which supported my theory that my impediments were not

birth defects, as I had been told by the doctors. The ultrasound

revealed that my left vocal cord and the nerve leading to my left ear

had both been severed. This led to the realization that the uvula,

too, was severed, when I was 2 ½ during the tonsillectomy & adenoid-

ectomy. Well, what do you know-it was a case of severe malpractice,

but too late to do anything about it. The fact is, God revealed the

truth to me when He thought I could handle it. After so many years

had gone by. So many hours of speech therapy. So many hearing

tests. So many days of wondering whether I would survive the

difficulties and struggles. I now know the truth. I felt as though a

big weight was lifted off my shoulders. God was with me all the time.

Every step of the way. Waiting . . . just waiting to tell me what He

had told me years before.” These were not birth defects. You were

born perfectly”. Thank you, Jesus, for being my best friend. 

The Deep State Connection to the Fatima Message

Mom's Health Issues

Back on August 4th, my Mom's pulmonologist sent her for a CT-Scan of her lungs. The reason for this is not just because she has emphysema and COPD, but she has nodules on her lungs, which, oddly enough, seem to either increase or decrease in size. No one seems to know where they came from or why she has them. In any case, she has to have a CT-Scan to see if there are any cysts.

The above paragraph was written five years ago. We lost Mom almost two years ago, on May 22, 2018. Even though her Death Certificate says she died of emphysema & COPD, she actually died because her one remaining kidney shut down, because it was full of stones-one big one in particular, that the doctor could not break up, so she could pass it.

So Mom kept on getting infections, going on antibiotics, for quite a while, until her system could take no more of it. When she stopped eating the Friday before she died, I knew that this was not good. By Monday, when the visiting nurse came to check on her, she thought my Mom would have returned to the hospital over the weekend. I told her Mom did not want to go back to the hospital. She stated, "If I'm going to die, I'd rather do it here at home."

At this point, Hospice had me sign papers, so that they could take over her care. I was not too happy about this, especially when Fedex delivered the box of meds they were planning to give my Mother starting the next day. I knew my Mom could not handle any more meds in her system. I prayed all that day, and into the night, that God would intervene. At 7 p.m. I prayed a rosary. Mom was in and out of coma. She woke up at 10:00, asked me to change her, which I did. She fell back to sleep, and I dosed off in the recliner, which was opposite the hospital bed, so that I could keep an eye on her.  A few minutes after Midnight, something woke me up. I looked over at my Mom, and noticed she was lying perfectly still. She was not inhaling her oxygen. I walked over to the bed and she had stopped breathing. God had taken her home. God had answered my prayers. She did not have to take that awful morphine that had come from hospice. It was over. All the pain and suffering was over.  The oxygen machine went silent. Mom's time on earth had ended.

I called 911, instead of calling hospice first; out of instinct, 911 came to my mind, & so I let them know what happened. The 911 tech wanted me to perform CPR on my mother. He even wanted me to get her down on the floor, off the bed! Could you imagine? I told him that my mother has died; there is no pulse, no heart rate, no breathing, no nothing. My mother was now dead weight; I certainly was not going to take her out of bed, & put her on the floor, especially since I only weigh 97 lbs.  I wanted her to rest in peace, which she was apparently doing.

Needless to say, the paramedics came, checked my Mom out, and told me to wait for the funeral home to come and take the body. I then called my nephew, who I knew would be up, since he worked at night. He told my sister, and she & her husband were at my house by 2 in the morning. They stayed with me until sunrise.

Funeral arrangements had to be made. Had to contact the rest of the family. The Riso family was going through a crisis of their own. It appears that while my mother was dying, my cousin Michael's daughter was dying, too! So unexpected, so young. Left behind a husband and two kids. Needless to say, the Vendetti family had two funerals a day apart. How surreal it had all been. It was like a bad nightmare that you wished you could wake from. Only God knows why He took Ashley from us.

I will never forget May 22, 2018, for as long as I live, that's for sure. It's almost two years now, and still it feels like it just happened. So much has happened since then. God has blessed us in many ways, and I know He still watches over us. While we mourn for those who have left us, we also remember the marks they've left on our lives. Indelible as they are, they are reminders of how we lived and grew in our Faith. For this, I thank God immensely. He was with me all the way on this journey, and I pray he'll never abandon me.

What is Happening to Our Church?

Pray, Pray, Pray, that's what our Blessed Mother says. We must pray for our priests, and for our Church. The devil goes after those closest to God. Apparently, he's had a field day for the past 75 years or so, because what's happening in our Church is nothing short of demonic or diabolical. 

Who would have thought that such heinous crimes would occur in the Catholic Church? The hierarchy seems to be involved in this in more ways than we care to admit. My Dad was still alive when the first wave of priests were accused of sexual abuse of minors. His reaction was such that I can't repeat it here. His parents, sisters, & brother loved the Church and supported it whole-heartedly. It upset my Dad to think that his family and others were being taken advantage of. Insurance would only cover just so much of the settlements; the funds had to come from elsewhere. 

How did this all happen? Because of a great number of priests and religious who were leaving the Church back in the sixties and prior, they were so desperate for vocations, that they took anyone who thought they had a vocation. Bad mistake-most of whom they took in, had homosexual tendencies; that is how all of this mess started. 

Priests-real priests, need prayers to keep them faithful to their vocation. There are too many temptations out there, and any one of them can slip and fall, which has happened over the years. Priests are no different than you and me-they are human beings, and they need protection. Perhaps that's why the St. Michael the Archangel Prayer is perfect for keeping the priests on the straight and narrow road. 

What has happened is despicable; no one can understand it, not even me. Priests are supposed to be men of Faith, who act in "persona Christi." There are many who do; but for those who don't, they need a major conversion of heart, mind, & soul if they want to remain in the priesthood. If they are not serious about their vocation, then they should leave. 

Our Bishop, Frank Caggiano, is leading us in a Holy Hour and a Liturgy on Saturday morning, on the Feast of our Lady of Sorrows, to pray in reparation for the sins committed by bishops, archbishops and cardinals, as well as priests, so that we can begin to heal.  While this is a start, the answer is to suspend all clerics who have misbehaved, or know of others who have engaged in such lewd conduct so that the Church can begin its purification process. Unless this happens, things won't change. 

In closing, every Diocese must take this seriously and implement procedures that must be adhered to, so that our Church can be restored to its former beauty.  

She Made It To Eighty!!!!!

Given my Mom's many health issues over the past eight years-some scarey moments, some serious moments, and some threatening situations, have given us all reason to believe that her health would get the best of her; however, my Mom's a fighter, and this has been made more evident over the past few days as we celebrated her 80th birthday!

My brother and sister-in-law, my sister and brother-in-law, and my two nephews, Sam and Nick, got together to give her a celebration, with not too much fanfare. (My Mom does not go for big parties) She just wanted her family around her. So that's what we gave her. We had ravioli-made by Sandy, and I made Mom her favorite dessert, cheesecake, along with Italian cookies.  That was on Sunday.

From day to day, I never know how she is going to feel or what kind of a day it will be. Each day is a challenge, so I ask God for strength to see both her and I through it. God is teaching me patience in a big way.

Today, my sister and I took her to Sal's in Monroe, for lunch, which she enjoyed immensely. This morning, she wasn't feeling well, but she is a trouper and did just fine.

None of my family members like having their picture taken, especially Mom; however I managed to sneak a couple of pics of her today, which she doesn't know about, so please don't tell her!

In any case, God has blessed Mark, Sandy, and I with seeing our mother reach the day she became an octogenarian. Today, July 8, 2015, is that day.

My Dad never made it to eighty; he passed away seventy-one days before his seventy-eigth birthday.  This past January 25th, he would have been 90. How I wish he could have been here to celebrate Mom's 80th with us.

I thank everyone on behalf of my Mom, those who sent cards or called her to wish her well.  The past few days have been very touching, and I thank God for the blessing he has given us.

What was Vatican II really about?

I was just a mere child of 8 when I heard on T.V. that the Pope was calling for a new council for the Church in the 20th Century. What exactly did this mean? At 8 years old, I must admit, that I was ignorant of what was going on at the time. After all, I had just received my First Holy Communion, which was the most blessed day of my life! Little did I know that the priest from whom I received my First Holy Communion, would be involved in a sex-abuse scandal, many years later. As I said, I was ignorant and perhaps, blind to what was happening. Or maybe, because I'd just received Jesus, which was the most important thing to me at the time, nothing else mattered. 

I had also heard that clergy and religious were beginning to leave the Church in droves! That totally surprised me-and I wondered why. I guess you could say that 1962-1965 were tumultuos years, all the way around. I loved the Church, and I remembered someone giving me a nun doll during this time. I used to love practicing celebrating Mass and using white Necco wafers for Holy Communion. Strange child, I was. After all, I was a girl, and females do not celebrate Mass-only males do. 

In any case, Faith was something beautiful, and I wanted to learn as much as I could from attending Mass on Sunday. My Mom always made us sit in the back, which I did not like because I found it very distracting. I preferred to sit in the front, so that I could be as close to Jesus as I possibly could;  I wanted to hear everything the priest was saying. 

Now, I loved to sing the hymns at Mass, and would often sing them at home too! I later became a member of a choir and always sang my heart out. I'm an alto, and loved singing the harmonies. 

Getting back to Vatican II, we'd been told that some major changes were going to be implemented-like hearing the readings in the vernacular, instead of in Latin. The priest was going to face the congregation, instead of facing the Tabernacle. We would no longer kneel when receiving Holy Communion; we would instead walk up in line, and be able to receive Communion in the hand, as opposed to the tongue. As time went on, female lectors, and the use of Eucharistic Ministers were becoming the norm. There were also female altar servers, too!

So what did this all mean to me? I have to admit that it was a little overwhelming for me to digest and to understand. For eight years of my life, we worshiped one way, the Mass was celebrated one way, and now, things would be radically different! Back in '65, when I received the seal of the Holy Soirit in Confirmation, I would have never suspected what was coming down the pike, so to speak. 

Fourteen years (after Confirmation) later, I was called to serve in a Catechetical Ministry to children with special needs, which would contine for 35 years and counting.

Two years later, I was invited to become a Lector. Four years after that, I was invited to become a Eucharistic Minister.  Yes, I was becoming very involved in the Church! When we give of ourselves, it is a beautiful thing. My spiritual life was indeed, being fortified, in more ways than I'll ever know!

So why do I bring up a Council, that perhaps had a very profound affect on me, enabling me to embrace everything the Church is? Because I, along with others, have been learning that some of the changes that were implemented, were not supposed to be implemented! O.K., I can accept this, but why was the Church doing things for 50 years, which it wasn't supposed to be doing in the first place? O God, help us! The answers to these questions are a little complex, but the short version is that some bishops and priests misinterpreted the documents, and perhaps got a little carried away in the process?

After celebrating Liturgy for so long, in the way we've become accustomed to, it's hard to believe that Vatican II never said anything about the approval of altar girls, using Eucharistic Ministers at every Mass-(they are to be utilized in cases of emergency only). Lectors-females supposedly should not serve on the altar; however, the Church continues to allow women to read because the women want to be an active part of the Liturgy. As a woman, I've loved being a part of the Liturgy, but if it's not in the Vatican II documentation, then we shouldn't be doing it, right?  Yes, this is a hard pill to swallow, especially for me; but if we are being asked to be obedient to the magisterium of the Church, shouldn't we obey?

The 50th anniversary of Vatican II invites us to revisit the documents, to understand what it was all about. I am in the midst of doing that now, and I will be discussing it more in the near future. 

May God bless us in his mercy.