Dub 55 years & celebrated Christmas
Together with Open Arms: Marie Chylenski Reunites with Four ...
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... Her daughters Helen Raccia and Maryanne Corrone said when her eyesight was better she was an avid reader of the bible and was a Jehovah's Witness for more than ...
By ERICA VENTO
Published on 10/27/2005
North Haven - Cooking, cleaning, sewing, and raising six children may sound like a chore to some, but for Marie Chylenski it was a way of life that she loved. Marie is famous for her meatballs and homemade blankets that her grandchildren still cherish.
“Cooking and having children was normal back when I was in my twenties,” says Marie. “It was our way of contributing, and that's what us Italians did back then.”
On any given day, especially Sundays, she'd be sure that there was food (especially macaroni) for her family. Marie raised six children with her late husband Edmund, whom she married at the age of 18. He was a gunner's mate in the Navy and was in World War two. She says he was a “handsome guy in a suit.”
While he was at war, she and her neighbors—other wives and girlfriends of soldiers—used to sit out on their porches and wait for the mail to come. If someone didn't receive a letter, the others would always share theirs. Marie and Edmund celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in May 1993.
“My full time job was running after one son and five daughters. I didn't mind it because that is what women were supposed to do back then. I wouldn't change anything about it,” says Marie
Marie used to picnic a lot with her children; they would pack up baskets and walk to Wharton Brooke where they would always sit in the same spot next to the stream in order to keep the drinks cold.
On their picnic she would always make plenty of pasta and potato salad for her children and nieces and nephews. Their family also spent a lot of time at the West Haven Beach and Savin Rock.
“Holidays are important to me; I always had everybody over my home. Christmas was my favorite because of all the food and having my children go to bed early, then wake up at midnight to open their presents,” said Marie
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After raising her children she moved on to help raise and enjoy her 13 grandchildren. She remembers going to sports events, but especially enjoyed spending the holidays with her family.
“I love them all, I cooked a lot for my family and anyone else that was around,” says Marie. “I had the best sauce—the secret was to let it cook for a couple of days, but lasagna was my favorite dish to make.”
Cooking was not the only thing that Marie did, she and Edmund often traveled to visit her son in Colorado, and her oldest daughter in Florida, then in Texas. She also visited San Francisco and Hawaii.
“Hawaii was a beautiful island, the water was beautiful but I never swam in it like my husband did,” says Marie.
She also went on a bus trip to the New York World's Fair with her children in 1960 and took plenty of trips to the Bronx Zoo with her children, and her sister's family.
Marie is a second-time member of five generations of family; she raised six children, has 13 grandchildren, 10 great-grandchildren and two great- great-grandchildren. She enjoyed making her grandchildren blankets, which one of her granddaughters still has on her bed at age 28. She also handmade clowns, sock monkeys, and pillows that looked like cupcakes.
Her daughters Helen Raccia and Maryanne Corrone said when her eyesight was better she was an avid reader of the bible and was a Jehovah's Witness for more than 55 years.
“I can't believe how fast time flew by, the saying is correct; time really does fly by when you are having fun,” says Marie
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footnote from Danny Haszard:i don't get this,is this blatant honesty or a clever Watchtower cover puff piece to imply normalization
