Theresa G Salumunek

Theresa Germaine Grosso was born June 7, 1927 in Chicago Illinois. She was the second child of Peter and Leona Grosso , whose older sister is Delphine. Peter, a singer on the radio, moved the family to Los Angeles in 1929 in hopes of furthering his music career.

She attended John Marshall high school, working part time at Thrifty Drug store where she met her future husband, Fred Salumunek. In 1944, Theresa and Freddy, eloped to Yuma, Az. returning Los Angeles to reside.

In 1945 she gave birth to their first daughter, Terrie.

In 1948 the couple moved to Houston, to be closer to Freddy's aging parents. Because of difficulty finding a good job, they decided to move back to Los Angeles. Nearing the end of her second pregnancy early in 1949, Theresa returned early and gave birth to her second child, Amelia. Back in Houston, Freddy finally did find a good job, so Theresa and her daughters rejoined him.

In 1954, Theresa gave birth to their third and last child, Fred. In 1955 they bought the home they both lived in for the rest of their lives. Theresa chose to send her children to the nearby Catholic School at Immaculate Conception, and this led her to convert to her husband's Catholic faith. She became active the school's Mother's Club and also worked part time at the school selling milk and candy at lunchtime to the students.

When her youngest child started school in 1960, she returned to full time employment, working as a pharmacy technician at Mading's Drugs, where she met her friend and mentor Billy Wong. She continued in this career for over 20 years, working at various pharmacies, but the longest at Fed-Mart. When Fed-Mart closed in 1982, she began working in the office of dermatologist Harris Rotman as bookkeeper/accounting clerk, where she worked until she retired in 1995.

Always a talkative, gregarious person, Theresa loved being with people. She liked being involved in the community, so became active in the Magnolia Park/ Pineview Place Civic Club. In that capacity she became acquainted with Mayor Bill White, and got to be friends with then- city council member Carol Alvarado.

Theresa lived for family, both immediate and extended. Children were special to her, especially her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Her face would light up whenever she saw them or they were even mentioned. She loved animals - there was never a day in her life that she didn't have one or more pets around the house, dog, cat or duck.

She individually took some of her grandchildren on vacations, including Hawaii and several Caribbean cruises. She also took vacations with each of her childrens' families, including going to Disney World and one last return trip to Los Angeles. She also made two trips to Italy, where her paternal grandparents was born, and had the opportunity to connect with Italian family members while there.

Throughout her adult life, she was extremely independent and self-reliant. She managed the household finances, and her children well-fed, well-clothed and educated, and even saved for her own retirement - despite a modest income. She was always happy with what she had, and was proud of the fact that she never took a handout from anyone.

It was her sincere, and adamant, desire to live independently in the only home she'd ever owned for the rest of her life. She nearly accomplished this, living alone until just 5 months prior to her passing. She spent these last months in the marvelous Silverado Memory Care Center - where she was constantly with people, and was very well taken care of.

Theresa is survived by her sister, Del, children, Terrie, Amelia, and Fred, grandchildren Cathy, Nancy, Brandon, Lauri, Eric, and Adam, great grandchildren Grace, Clarke, and Carsyn, son-n-law Paul, daughter-n-law Josie, grandson-n-law Marc and numerous nieces, nephews, and cousins.