In Loving Memory

Her name was Geneva D'Anjolell. Most people called her Gini Dee. I called her Mom-mom Gidge. She was my mom's mother and in May of 2000, when she died, we were all so devastated. She was the type of person with a lot of character. Like she could light up the room just by being there, mostly in her younger years. I knew her as my mom-mom, but my mom and uncles and their friends knew her as a very awesome person. Not only their mom, but their friend. In her younger years (and by younger I mean not old enough to be our grandmom) Gini Dee was a nightclub singer and made a lot of friends that way. She knew what good music was and had a great singing voice. So you could imagine how hard it was to hear her recorded songs at her funeral. I cried so hard that day.

The thing about my Mom-mom Gidge that sticks out the most in my memory is how much she loved her kids and grandchildren. Her and my mom were best friends. She was her only daughter. I was her first grandchild. My brother and sister and I were getting so close to her towards the end of her life that I can see why she had to die then. She was planning to move in with us and our mom and if she had lived long enough so that happened, we would've gotten even closer, then it would've been even worse when she died later. It was better off the way it happened. She had already gotten over a stroke from years ago and needed so many pills (she called it her pharmacy) and still had some pain. So when she had the stroke that eventually killed her, it was better off.

We've had so many memories with her. She made my brother and sister and I laugh so hard without even meaning to. The older she got, the funnier she got for some reason. I've heard stories from my uncles and my mom about the younger Gini Dee and she has lived quite a life. She has a lot to be proud of, especially when it comes to her kids and grandkids. It's been six years since her death and no matter how long it's been, I'll never stop missing her. She's in a better place now and I'm glad for that. In Loving Memory of my Mom-mom Gidge.