75th Birthday

My children and their partners have arranged to have a birthday party on October 5, at the Colonial Manor in Tappan, N.J. They are having it on the fifth because they want to have the party on a Sunday.

They invited 92 people: all my relatives, my in-laws, my children's families and my friends from Closter. My grandchildren were there ranging from nine to 28 years old. Judy and Gary came from California, Sharon and Paul from South Carolina, Denise from Maryland. Many are at closer distances.

I wore a rose colored gown, a pearl necklace, earrings, bracelet and pearls in the waist line. When I walked in with my oldest daughter Carmela, John and Phyl were there receiving the people. They all ran to me and wished me luck. They said I looked lovely and didn't look as though I was 75. Of course that made me feel good. I was surprised to see so many people came to my party.

We had one hour for champagne punch, then we all sat down. My son John made a little talk, then my son-in-law Dino said the blessings and they all drank a toast to me. We then started the meal. We had celery, olives and radishes, buns with butter, red wine, minestrone soup, salad, prime ribs, baked potato and string beans. For dessert we had a piece of my cake with ice cream and coffee.

Then my daughter Ann gave a short biography of my life from the time I was a little girl until I was 75. It was very touching. There was music and we all enjoyed dancing with each other. My first dance was with my oldest son John.

My parents always used to say, “Be religious; go to church as often as you can. Be a good example to others. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Never lie and do the best you can. Love everyone in your family, and they will love you.” I love my family. They surprised me with the wonderful celebration they gave me for my 75th birthday. They made me a queen for a day. Thank you God for blessing me with such a good family.