At Babe’s memorial service in Davenport, Iowa, Margie Kager — the eldest child of Violenza’s brother Silverio — gave me a copy of a letter she wrote to the Italian Bertozzis sharing her memories of Egisto.  I think Bianca’s Vineyard readers will enjoy her recollections:   To our Bertozzi Family in Italy: After reading the book “Bianca’s Vineyard” that […]

            She’s gone.  Our beloved mother and nona, Babe, passed away two weeks ago, and we’re still in a resigned state of shock.  For those of you who knew Babe through “Bianca’s Vineyard,” you know that she was a unique woman with an amazing family history.  Violenza Bertozzi didn’t let her mother’s mental instability or […]