Wednesday, July 19, 2023
Julia is my cousin and was my role model. She was sweet, generous of spirit, intelligent, kind and her passing leaves a huge emptiness in my heart. Knowing I will never hear her voice or speak with her again, pains me deeply. Despite living hundreds of miles away I spoke with Julia regularly, it was almost like we had ESP as I would think of her and suddenly the phone would ring and I would hear her beautiful voice greeting me! Conversely I often would phone her and when she would hear my voice and she’d say, “Oh hello sweetie, I can’t believe you called, I have been thinking about you all day!”
I will forever cherish the memories Julia shared living with our family on Prospect Place in Brooklyn in the big apartment house built by her grandfather to house his family and keep them close. I enjoyed hearing Julia recounting the many stories of the house full of cousins and their antics and the many cousins, aunt and uncles living in the neighborhood. Julia was the baby of the family, cherished for the place she held but honored for her beauty, brains, hard work, commitment to family and morality. Julia was a wonderful cook, she loved preparing traditional Italian dishes and recipes passed down from her mother my dear Aunt Rose. One funny memory I will share was from her younger days living in Brentwood. Julia had prepared a splendid Italian meal with the dining room table perfectly and beautifully set, the dinner and company were thoroughly enjoyable. She had a huge Irish Setter that crawled under the table and then stood up which moved the table around as everyone grabbed their plates and glasses while laughing hysterically.
As a kid I remember thinking Julia was stunningly beautiful, classy and glamorous and she was! I christened Julia my “Bond Girl Cousin” because she looked like she could have easily stepped into that role. While we had many college graduates in our family including doctors, engineers and college professors, Julia was the first female college graduate in our immediate family. My father, Julia’s first cousin always held his baby cousin with the utmost of respect and would laud her to me as the person to emulate, I still remember his words ingrained in my memory, “Be like cousin Julia, work hard in school and make sure you graduate from college.”
Rest in peace my dear, sweet cousin, I love you and will hold your memory, spirit, wisdom and gentle kindness in my heart always.
Jonette Fernino LaPalomento
