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Author: Diane Randesi -
I was born in Johnson City, New
York, on January 21, 1947. I grew up in Endicott, New York, the home of
the Endicott Johnson Shoe Company and International Business Machines (IBM).
I was the middle of three children. My recollection of my childhood is memories
centered around family and family events, such as birthdays and holidays.
Most of the activities in my early years centered around Brownies and Girl
Scouts, which were associated with the Catholic Church. Nine months after
I was born, my husband, Steve, was born in the same hospital. We discovered
last year that our birth certificates look the same and are even signed
by the same person! It must have been destiny because we met in Kindergarten,
were childhood sweethearts, attended the 9th and 12th grade proms together,
and then married in 1969 in Saint Anthony’s Church. In 1971, we, along with
my brother John and his wife, Gail, embarked on an adventure that took us
on a camping trip across the country where we would end up in California
to experience life in another part of the United States. We intended it
to be for one year, but that year extended to 27 years. We settled in Northern
California; John and his family settled in Southern California; my younger
brother, David, followed a few years later and also lives with his family
in Southern California. My parents moved from Poughkeepsie, New York to
Northern California in 1978.
Steve and I have a wonderful family - Karen, age 21, Jeff, age 20, and Joey,
age 17. Karen is teaching 2nd grade as part of a service project in Mobile,
Alabama, Jeff is attending college at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, California,
and Joey is a senior at Bellarmine College Prep High School in San Jose.
They are terrific people, and we are enormously proud of each one of them.
Steve has been part owner of his own business since 1979, where I work when
it fits into my schedule! (It’s great to be in with the boss!) I spend time
volunteering when I’m not working, and I enjoy doing projects using my hands.
My adult life has been pretty much centered around the children, and now
that we are soon to be “alone in the nest” (except for our beagle, Mocha),
I need to “get a life.” When we retire, we would like to travel and do work
in the service of others. Cooking is one of my least favorite things to
do. I’d much rather compile and write a cookbook than actually cook, but
I’m starting to get inspired.
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