Some doubts lingered as to how well Tony would do against professionals. But whether or not well founded, hope was high. And then the roof fell in.
The first four rounds of the pro draft came and went without a nibble. Tony, his coach, his teammates, his family, and his friends, were dumbfounded.
Tony put as good a face on it as possible. Okay, so I didn’t get picked right off. I guess I should’ve expected that; I mean, after all, look at the guys they did pick: all from big-name, powerhouse schools. If I had it to do over, I guess I wouldn’t’ve buried myself in Kalamazoo. But there’s still the other rounds …
The remaining rounds were held in January. But by the time the thirtieth round had passed by without the name Delvecchio being mentioned, Tony was not only having second thoughts, he was devastated.. His entire college career had been predicated on a future in pro football. Now what?
He’d have to make some calls … Coach might have some connections … maybe some pro club out there needed a backup quarterback … and, after all, he did have those press clippings …
Though down, Tony was far from out. He pulled himself together. He was young, he had talent, he had hopes, he had ideals. Never say die!
Lucy was about to graduate from St. William’s high school. Which, due to a pastoral eccentricity, was exclusively for young women.
St. William’s elementary school was coed. But when it came to high school, the pastor volunteered parish money to pay half the tuition charged by all-male De LaSalle Collegiate. It was a deal, as he saw it, where the parish saved money in the long run by not having to spring for expensive coaches and sports programs.
Lucy hadn’t cottoned to the setup. But after tears and a tantrum or two, she settled down and went along with being part of an all-girls school. And had to admit there were distinct advantages in the uniform, in not having to compete for boys, and in maintaining a. longstanding tradition.
Now her thoughts zeroed in on graduation activities: breakfasts, lunches, dinners, caps and gowns, musical and social events, and, as the top priority, the prom.
Lucy had an extra complication that, as far as could be ascertained, no other young lady faced during this graduation hoopla: She had a brother who was going to be a priest. As a matter of fact, her graduation Mass would be his first Solemn Mass. How’s that for being eclipsed?
If that were not enough-and it clearly was more than enough-another brother was graduating, not from high school, but from college. Not only that, but his picture was all over the local newspapers-the sports sections anyway.
Nobody was interested in Lucy’s grade average: 3.8, thank you very much. Everybody was busy conjecturing about her brother Tony’s career.
Agony!
Had any other young woman ever been relegated to so much obscurity on one of the most important days of her entire life?
Lucy’s doubts to the contrary notwithstanding, it was a triumphant time for the Delvecchios.
Vinnie would make a central casting priest. So tall that, later, one of the school children referred to him as the “high priest.” Pencil-thin and ramrod-straight, he had plenty of room to expand and still be every inch the ascetic-a tall, dark, and handsome ascetic.
By general consensus Vinnie was headed for great things. No one could quite figure out why he had not been sent to Rome for his theological studies. It might have been politics: One of the two seminarians sent to Rome from Vinnie’s class was nephew to the bishop of Grand Rapids.
Still, the smart money was on Vinnie’s climbing the hierarchical ladder. Not a bad endorsement, considering that he was not particularly close to anyone in his class.
It was almost as if Vincent and Anthony might have had different fathers. Oh, there were similarities, of course, but in physique they were worlds apart.
Tony was listed as a six-footer. A slight exaggeration; he was more like five feet eleven. Where Vinnie appeared to have come fresh from forty days of fasting in the desert, Tony seemed never to have missed a meal.
Lucy was the prize-as close to flawless as a young adult could get.
Several inches taller than her mother, but as fine-boned, Lucy had her late father’s surprising strength.
Girls’ sports had not yet come of age. But in an all-girl high school, somehow the varsity basketball team became the big game, and the members of that team were the BGOC-Big Girls on Campus.
Besides holding one of the top academic grades in her class, Lucy was also a standout in theater, dance, and on the debating team. In almost any other family, Lucy would have been the noteworthy member. But among the Delvecchios, particularly at this point, she came in a distant third.
It wasn’t fair! That she knew. But her day would come. Would it ever!
This was still the era, especially in parochial schools, when young ladies (at least those with no thought whatsoever of entering the convent) were pointed at the vocation of finding a man, having his babies, and answering to the sublime name of homemaker.
Lucy had paid close attention when the nuns spelled all this out-with, nonetheless, of course, a word or two on religious vocations. Realistically, the nuns knew that, of the two life vehicles, wife and mother would draw far more applicants than the religious calling.
Lucy, early on, had set her sights on the medical profession. It mattered not that there were precious few female MDs. Determination was Lucy’s middle name. Had the priesthood been her goal, it would not have mattered that her Church did not ordain women. But Lucy didn’t crave ordination. One priest in the family seemed enough. Of course, if she were offered an immediate bishopric …
Things were rolling for the Delvecchios.
But more and more Louise was able to participate in the fulfillment of her children less and less.
There was a nagging pain that would neither be relieved nor identified. With some frequency, she visited the physician who had treated the family for many years.
Lucy, mostly because she was the only child still living at home, was the only one who knew-or at least had some glimmer, since Louise did her best to mask her condition.
Lucy urged her mother to seek other medical opinions. “After all, Mother, things have changed since scalpels replaced leeches.”
“Don’t be disrespectful, Lucy. Don’t forget: Dr. Schmidt brought you into this world!”
Actually, Dr. Schmidt agreed with Lucy. It was he who sent Louise to a series of specialists. One of whom called Dr. Schmidt. “Werner, I got Mrs. Delvecchio’s biopsy.”
“And …?”
“It’s bad. Doesn’t get much worse. Pancreatic cancer.”
“I feared as much. I don’t suppose we’re in time to save her.”
“It’s inoperable, Werner. Sorry, old man. I don’t envy you now-or her.”
“Nor do I.”
Schmidt phoned Louise, told her he had news that was not so good, and asked if it would be possible to gather the family to discuss the options.
12
Lucy was home, but Tony was in Kalamazoo and Vincent was in Plymouth. Louise would try to gather the tribe. Would tomorrow morning at ten be all right?
Ten would be as good as any other time.
Lucy wasted no time. She got her mother to lie down. Now Louise was fighting whatever was wrong with her and, additionally, the worry over her children. Lucy would contact her brothers. Mother was not to be concerned.
Vincent and Tony were shocked. They knew their mother had not been well. But not being on the scene, they’d had no clue how serious her condition was. To obviate any possible excuses, Lucy painted the situation to be as bleak as her imagination would permit. Even so, she could not match the hopelessness of reality.