Grace Falitico in her back yard with wheelbarrow and Rose o’ Sharon, Englewood Drive, Stow OH, 2007

Born in 1918 Grace is nearly 90 years old. She lives alone in the house that she and her husband, Carl, built together and in which she raised her two children, Carmine and Christopher. Carl passed away over twenty years ago, about seven years following retirement from decades of labor at Plant 1 of Goodyear Tire and Rubber. With a little outside help she still tends to much of the yard and house work. Born to Italian immigrants she is a lifelong Catholic as much as a function of ethnic background as of religion. She typically attends mass at two parishes each week -- 5:00 PM Saturday afternoon at Holy Family, half a mile from her house and 11:00 AM Sunday at St. Eugene’s in Munroe Falls. She is often called on to sing at church funerals and has in the past been involved in community theater musical productions.