Dear Grandma,
You and I have shared a bond that could not be broken. I have so many wonderful memories of our time together. You were always there for me . You never missed the milestones in my life or the lives of my children. You were present when Taylor was born and you were  a great source of comfort . 
My childhood memories remain strong in my mind . Christmas time was always special. We shopped from 9 am to 9 pm and you hated to shop ! It was a tradition that we cherished.
I always looked forward to Easter and the amazing Fannie May candy .
We played Skip Bo for hours , went to the movies and enjoyed so many lunches throughout the years. 
If I was feeling down, you felt it too. You were confident in your faith to help you through the rough times , and there were many . 
You always greeted me with a smile and called me your little angel..
I am forever grateful for your unconditional love .
I am confident that you are reunited with those that you loved and missed dearly. 
You are forever in my heart .. 
Love Always
Tara

My Great-Grandma Helen lived out the "great" that the lineage, of three generations back, prescribed to her name. She lived out and leaves a legacy of a quiet, warm love. She felt like the cup of hot chocolate that was waiting for you in the kitchen as you and your siblings wrangled off snow-covered boots and scarves wrapped across rosy cheeks. My Grandma Helen was small in stature and carried God in her posture. She knew what she believed, and her mind, mouth, and hands followed suit. 

I see my Grandma Helen in the blue twinkle in my Grandpa Ray's eyes and feel her peace in my mom, Tara's, presence. 

I will continue to listen for the chime of her greeting, "hi angel," as although she has physically left us, her spirit anchors us still. 

Happy homecoming, Great-Grandma Helen.

Our Favorites {Part 2}

Lee Street itself holds a lot of fond memories; as dining out for lunch was a usual for us.  As I mentioned prior, Burger King was always a solid choice. Grandma certainly was the one to get me hooked on Whoppers- and I will forever miss the old recipe of their chicken nuggets. Often, there was also a surprise waiting for me; (Great) Uncle Ralph and Aunt Eleanor!
 
To this day, I still have a collection with many of the fun, odd-ball toys from the kid’s meals- my favorite being a couple of Furbies- and the ultimate: an orange Robo-Cat with laser eyes that would run around the floor. I had an absolute ball that day in the upstairs kitchen when we got home. And I was very proud to show it off to Joe.

If it wasn’t Burger King; well, there were plenty of other options. There were many days next door, at Mr. Pups, where we’d have our usual spot at the window. And I can also recall many ‘fancier’ lunches at Silver Stallion across the street, often accompanied with Ralph and Eleanor, Uncle Lee, or many of Grandma’s church friends (who I absolutely adored).  

A more rare but still prominent place was Wendy’s. Grandma would always get a salad with chicken and pecans sprinkled on top, with the occasional cup of chili. And we’d always aim for the ‘lower’ level, surrounded by windows, with lots of sun. 

Finally, as I would occasionally accompany Grandma to help out preparing for the soup kitchen at Our Lady of Hope, I grew a deep liking to lentil soup through it. Mom has often told me, Grandma wasn’t too exploratory with new foods- she liked what she liked- but that never stopped Grandma encouraging me to try new things- and helping out there was also a good way to do so. 

I call it ‘our favorites’ for a reason. While they certainly started off as Grandma’s, I have definitely adopted her taste. For one, Grandma had a good taste, and even more so; there’s wonderful memories linked through all of it.

Our favorites {Part 1} 

As I spent so much time with Grandma when I was little; there are a lot of her food preferences I picked up on and still carry out through today. 

Perhaps it's not the best, but one of the earliest things I can recall is Grandma allowing me to steal sips from her cup of coffee. It was always black coffee. 

As my Mom is a coffee fanatic (she has her own preferred mixes, grinds beans at home, and very rarely orders from any chain), and her and my Dad both prefer their coffee on the lighter/sweet side- Grandma is the only one I could collect that taste from.

Besides my parents (and now my Husband), I was never the type to share drinks with people.  But whenever a home-made lunch, or a family meal at Grandma’s came around… I’d be excited when Grandma offered me some of her cup. 

This is also the place I can directly link to my love of RC Cola.

Furthermore, my Grandma always loved nuts {*insert family joke here*}; and I can always recall her and Joe having containers of peanuts on the ready, along with Grandma’s stash of mixed nuts. Cashews, almonds, macadamia, pecans. We’d often share a bowl of them throughout the day. If we decided to really indulge, there also tended to be chocolate covered almonds. 

Technically, I do have a slight allergy. Luckily, it’s never turned into anything I have to worry about. And if it ever does, well… there’s things you simply never give up. 

Mentioning pecans: when I was little, Grandma and I would often frequent what was an ice cream parlor next to Pet Supplies Plus on Lee Street in Des Plaines. It was always a given that she’d order a cone with a scoop of Butter Pecan- sometimes I’d double up and get the same, other times we’d take turns and share to have the best of both worlds on whatever we chose to order. And If we happened to be at Lake Opeka on a summer day, you could guarantee that we’d end up getting a cup of Popsicle Lemon-Lime Shots.

Grandma Helen and our Dear old neighbor Helen. They were very sweet together and couldn’t be more different.. Grandma Helen was quiet and proper , Helen had no filter . We had so many laughs.

The Choo Choo Restaurant 
Grandma, Tara , Taylor, Jaxon 
Grandma loved the Sloppy Joe’s !

Grandma with Jaxon , her Great Great Grandson 
❤️

Grandma with Madison Kopecky..she always loved holding babies

Grandma-Days! {Part 2}

Being at Grandma’s also meant I got to spend a lot a time with Tommy and Joe growing up. If it wasn’t Joe’s day with me, I’d often end up spending some time upstairs hanging out. Which meant enjoying the cats, marveling at the fish tanks, and seeing the newest additions to the Star Wars or gaming collection. 

Eventually, our day would come to an end, often wrapped up by playing with the cats. Happily so, Grandma would always report back that I was “Grandma’s little Angel”, which would often be followed by my parents saying I was “Growing like a weed,” and she’d be ready to debunk those comments with “She’s growing like a flower.”  

I’d never be ready to leave, but was always happy to give her a hug and kiss, and look forward to later that week or the next. 

Being bored never was the case, not even in the slightest. As cool as days out and about were: I was always more than content and happy just simply spending time with Grandma, Joe, and the cats at home. To me, there was nothing better than just that and what I looked forward to the most.

I can only hope she loved those days as much as I did and still do.

Grandma-Days! {Part 1}

As many know, when I was little, Mom and Dad had a company to help run, along with all of our immediate family. This meant during the weekdays: I spent a lot of time with relatives when I wasn't in school, or Dad was on sales calls and/or deliveries, etc. 

I spent time at Uncle Ray and Aunt Jan's, Uncle John and Aunt Nancy's, and A LOT of time at Grandma's! 

I'd find out eventually, Grandma was always worried that I was bored. As a daily church goer, she even took breaks from attending on the days with me at some point (as I was also in a private school my primary years and had to attend weekly- at the very least). But that was never the case. 

The morning would start off with "See you later, Alligator!" to my parents, with hugs, we'd watch them drive off and the fun would commence!

Now, a lot of days were filled with adventures: There were many summer-filled days of going to Rosemont's splash pad or Mystic Waters (I still have Grandma's expired ID card). My parents and Grandma made sure I knew how to swim well. As I recall, Grandma dedicated a decent amount of pool-time so I could be a strong swimmer. Often, we went to Tara's to see the kids (I remember a few Christmas seasons helping decorate cookies over there), helping out in the soup kitchen, and much, much more!

On other days: we had our routine. Attending morning mass, going to the play-center while Grandma took her gym class, then we'd go to lunch or family would stop by.  It was often followed by watching Judge Judy, Jeopardy, or Wheel of Fortune (which I still find myself enjoying because of her). Grandma could play a game of Solitaire, and I would often ask her to read to me or we would challenge each other with drawing…

Mom was devout in the Catholic faith.
Church was not only a representation of her faith, but it was also a social outlet. Mom proudly attended services typically 6 days a week. She took it upon herself to become a lay minister, which means she could distribute communion. This was a task that she took on with great pride.
Mom always proudly provided church with cakes and other baked goods for various functions.
For Mom, service and religion were just a normal part of every day.
God help us be more like mom!

April 1951,
Helen and Ray's Wedding:
John, Joanne, Harry, Ray, Helen, Eleanor, Bridesmaid and Grooms man, Lee, and children...

May 28th, 1976 Debra's Graduation 
Back Row: Steve, Helen, Tom, Tommy, Janice, John
Front Row: Ray, Tara, Joe, Debra, Nancy

Mom loved to host guests.
First off, she was a fantastic cook of especially all roasts. If you were lucky enough to attend one of Mom's fancy dinners, you were in for a real treat.
She'd bring out the fancy tablecloth, the fancy dishes, and maybe even the silver.
We'd all reluctantly help out (under duress :)
Mom always said near completion, "it's easy to cook it, getting it all together at the end is difficult". Which represented her stress at pulling everything together at the end, to as near perfection as possible.
The final treat would be her dessert cooking. Possibly a pound cake with strawberries, possibly a chocolate mocha cake, if Mom served it, you could be certain it was delicious.

I'm not sure I realized at the time, but I experienced the pinnacle of eating under mom's care and only occasionally have I pulled off anything remotely resembling her efforts.

Mom you are already sorely missed!

Helen and Katherine Anne - September, 2001

Johhny's Wedding
Helen, John, Johnny, Nancy,  Casey and Francis, - 2001

Tommy, Carrie, Helen, Tom (?), Bill, Mike, John, Nancy, Mary, Diana, Debra, Gary, John and Kari

John, Nancy, Debra, Gary, Ray, Janice, Tom, and Helen - Oct 7, 1990, At Fountain Blue

Family Picnic 1991: 
Helen, Mary,  and John

Fun Club! Last Meeting at Our Lady of Hope - 1992

Family Picnic 1987:
Standing:  Susan, Helen, Katie, Janice, Lee 
Sitting: Donna, Jack, Loretta, Steve

Martinek Picnic 1991
Helen, Eleanor, Millie, Barb, Ida, Dawn

75th  Birthday for Tom, Helen with Priest. Father Tom

Tommy's Grade School Graduation! 1993
Back: Deb, Helen, Tommy, Tom
Front: Johhny, Bill,

Lynn Carlson-Reindl's Baby Shower
Standing: Debra, Eleanor, 
Sitting: Ida, Ethel, Helen

Tom and Helen's Wedding - September, 23, 1972

Lee, Helen, Eleanor, Harry, Milly, John, Barbara, Tom, Ida, Sam, Dawn
- 1990

Dawn, Sam, Ida, Tom, Barbara, John, Milly, Harry, Eleanor, Helen, Lee

Lou Lazzaratto, Anne Bianci, Helen,  Emily Lazzaratto - 1970's

Jack,  Helen, Donna, Steve, Herb, Anna, Janette, Scott, Mike, Susan, Joe, Katie, Loretta, John

Donna, Tom, Katie, Joe, Mike, Susan, Helen, John, Debbie, Tommy, Jack, Loretta, Joe, Scott, Janice, Johhny, Tara, Ray, Nancy, Bill, Janet, John,  Anna, Steve, Herb

Dawn, Barbara, Eleanor, Milly, Ida, Helen

Helen, Tara,  Ashlynn and Alyssa F.  - 1995

Martinek Picnic, 1995:
Top: Sam, Ray, John, Harry, Lee
Bottom: Dawn, Ida, Barbara, Millie, Eleanor, Helen

Anne Bianci  & Helen - Martinek Picnic, 1992

Martinek Picnic 1995
Top: Harry and Lee
Bottom: Eleanor and Helen

Martinek Picnic 1995
Top: Lori, Ralf, Tom
Bottom: Eleanor and Helen

Helen and Tom with Ashlynn and Alyssa Fatigato - 1995

Martinek Picnic 1995
Top:  Sam, Ray, John, Harry, Lee
Bottom: Dawn, Ida,  Barbara, Millie, Eleanor, Helen

Martinek Picnic 1995
Top:  Matt, Sam, Lori, Tom, Ray , Joann , John, Harry, Betsey, Lee, Lori, Ralph, Tom
Bottom: Dawn, Ida,  Barbara, Millie, Eleanor, Helen

OBITUARY

Helen A Lazzarotto

2 April, 1934 – 7 January, 2024

Oehler Funeral Home

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