Musings…

WHEN MY JOURNEY IN REAL ESTATE STARTED

My parents built their home in 1955 on Winthrop Road. As I write this date I now realize that I was involved in Real Estate from the very beginning of my life.  My parents, Mildred and George, were so proud of the new home they were building on a large corner lot that had a thick woods in the backyard. When they would visit the construction site, each evening after work, my three older siblings had fits about leaving their old neighborhood on Griggs Avenue. Our new home was to be on Winthrop Road, across town, which was too far to walk or even bicycle.

I listened closely to my father as he recounted the stories of building his new home. Over the years I soaked up all the details. I truly enjoyed understanding how it came to be. It was built by the Evento Builders, a local family business. My father was so impressed by their workmanship and ethic. My mother was fussier. She didn’t care for how they laid the stone work in the bay window, which was in the front of her new house. It was beautiful stone, it may have been granite with flecks of schist  from the local hills. I am not sure of that but I can picture it distinctly as it glistened when the sun hit the stone at an angle.   I do know that the Eventos tore it all down and rebuilt it to my mother’s liking. Father Evento and his sons, an Italian immigrant family, showed immense pride in their workmanship. It showed everywhere.  

My father, George, was the son of immigrant parents surviving brutal lives in Eastern Europe. He could easily relate to the Eventos and shared their name to anyone who asked.  George may have been the first in his family to have his own home built. His mother passed away shortly after it was completed. I have never seen a picture of her at our house. I do have an old black and white photo of my  Zaide (grandfather), standing with his grandchildren in the backyard.  This must have been a true accomplishment they never could have dreamt about in Poland.

This home on Winthrop Road stood the test of time. My father would say that homes are to be enjoyed and used. He meant most of the house was to be actively used as the living room and dining rooms were for special occasions only. They transformed a small bedroom on the second floor into a TV room. When we weren’t in the kitchen, we were usually in the TV room. Lots of delicious food was ferried up and down the steps from the kitchen to the TV room.  Four children, countless family meals and celebrations, relatives, music, ping pong games and Slinkies on stairs that we raced up and down for almost 50 years.  

The Evento family built one great home.