McHenry County Blog

Yesterday, I gave a hint of what interested Crystal Laker Nancy Scalero, who died in August. I found evidence of her Kitchen Militia in the minutes of April 18, 2000, McHenry County Board meeting.

At a September gathering we had, many proclaimed her the “Captain” of the Kitchen Militia.

She was also a Republican Precinct Committeeman in McHenry County.

Her 26-year old daughter Mary spoke for her father Richard and younger brother Alex.

What follows are what I got from her notes. It will be much less elegant than Mary’s talk, but I am working from her outline.

Mary told how she had joined Toastmasters a few months ago to learn how to make speeches, but “I haven’t yet made a single speech. This is my first speech, my most difficult.

“Papa, Alex and I put together the photo boards sorting through pile after pile of photos, but just couldn’t find enough to capture every moment.

“We could fill thousands and thousands of boards with pictures and memories from a lifetime, but it will would not be enough. There’s no way to capture it all:

• The memories
• Her smile
• Her laugh
• Her jokes

“How can I explain in a few minutes everything Mom meant to me?

“Squeeze thousands of memories into just a few lines?

“So, I’ve picked some favorite memories to share.

“She was so caring.

“Me, I was a handful. I played hide-n-seek when shopping.

“I ran off to hide, giggling.

“Mom was terrified.

“She bought bungee things (to attach to me).

“I figured out how to remove them.

“She bought a roller coaster type harness to retrofit the stroller.

“Other people would make mean comments, that she was a bad parent…(but it didn’t stop her from seeing to me safety).

“We laughed so hard when retelling that story.

“She did what she had to keep us safe, despite all the awful comments and stares.

“I talked to Alex when he was a baby in the crib and she listened through the baby monitor. Once I tried to pick him up out of the crib.

“She got so choked up as she explained how fast she ran to stop me from hurting myself or Alex.

“She was always there to keep us from getting hurt.

The third installment of the Nancy Scalero story will appear tomorrow.

Yesterday, I gave a hint of what interested Crystal Laker Nancy Scalero, who died in August. I found evidence of her Kitchen Militia in the minutes of April 18, 2000, McHenry County Board meeting.

At a September gathering we had, many proclaimed her the “Captain” of the Kitchen Militia.

She was also a Republican Precinct Committeeman in McHenry County.

Her 26-year old daughter Mary spoke for her father Richard and younger brother Alex.

What follows are what I got from her notes. It will be much less elegant than Mary’s talk, but I am working from her outline.

Mary told how she had joined Toastmasters a few months ago to learn how to make speeches, but “I haven’t yet made a single speech. This is my first speech, my most difficult.

“Papa, Alex and I put together the photo boards sorting through pile after pile of photos, but just couldn’t find enough to capture every moment.

“We could fill thousands and thousands of boards with pictures and memories from a lifetime, but it will would not be enough. There’s no way to capture it all:

• The memories
• Her smile
• Her laugh
• Her jokes

“How can I explain in a few minutes everything Mom meant to me?

“Squeeze thousands of memories into just a few lines?

“So, I’ve picked some favorite memories to share.

“She was so caring.

“Me, I was a handful. I played hide-n-seek when shopping.

“I ran off to hide, giggling.

“Mom was terrified.

“She bought bungee things (to attach to me).

“I figured out how to remove them.

“She bought a roller coaster type harness to retrofit the stroller.

“Other people would make mean comments, that she was a bad parent…(but it didn’t stop her from seeing to me safety).

“We laughed so hard when retelling that story.

“She did what she had to keep us safe, despite all the awful comments and stares.

“I talked to Alex when he was a baby in the crib and she listened through the baby monitor. Once I tried to pick him up out of the crib.

“She got so choked up as she explained how fast she ran to stop me from hurting myself or Alex.

“She was always there to keep us from getting hurt.

The third installment of the Nancy Scalero story will appear tomorrow.