The Curcuruto Girls

By Mary Kay Bullard

The Curcuruto Girls is a collection of short stories based on the lives of five Italian-American sisters from the upstate New York town of Fulton. The stories take place between the 1920’s and the 1950’s, based loosely on true stories about the sisters in their youth. Carmella, Kathryn, Anna, Nancy and Josephine were remarkable in their devotion to each other and to their families. Their stories remind us that human nature remains the same, even as the world around us has changed drastically since their time. Times may have changed, but today we can still find something in common with one or more of the sisters. Some of us are like Carmella, struggling to break through a social barrier. Some of us are like Kathryn, working through difficult self-esteem issues. Others are like Anna and have so much to say and no place to say it. We might be like Nancy, determined to find true love without compromise. Or we might be like Josephine, having alienated so many people that we can only focus on just that one person we care about deeply. These charming stories are modern folktales, revealing timeless elements of the human spirit.
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Mary Kay Bullard was born Mary Kathryn Calabro, in Lead, South Dakota. Her parents were from different parts of the country. Gregory was from Fulton, New York, and came to the Black Hills of South Dakota on a wrestling scholarship. Tricia was an ex-nun from Scott City, Kansas. Greg and Tricia raised their family in Lead, and Gregory frequently brought his daughters to Fulton to experience his family and culture. These visits "home" went on for many years until Greg’s mother, Kathryn, died and the visits became less and shorter.
Mary Kay loved the visits to Fulton and would protest profusely when it was time to leave her beloved Grandma and Great Aunts. They told her she should be a lawyer, the way she could argue!
After graduating from Lead High School, Mary Kay followed her mother’s footsteps into the convent. The convent kicked her out and she went to college in Rapid City, South Dakota, for that law degree her Grandma and Aunts wanted. At the age of twenty she married Andrew Bullard, a nice, tall boy from El Paso, Texas, and nine months later their son, Sean, was born. Sean’s arrival delayed Mary Kay's education; she graduated when Sean was three. Mary Kay then sought employment as a paralegal, receiving many lovely rejection letters. The only "yes" came from the director of the Deadwood Library in South Dakota.
Mary Kay worked many happy years at Deadwood Library as a children’s librarian/event planner/ personal assistant while raising Sean. Andrew became a union pipefitter and traveled a lot, trying to come home on weekends when working nearby.
Andrew’s closest location was the small town of Colstrip, Montana. When the Director position at the public library opened up, Andrew asked Mary Kay to apply and the family moved to Colstrip. Tia, Andrew's daughter from a previous relationship, joined them.
Mary Kay now lives in Colstrip, Montana, with her husband of seventeen years, two teenagers, and one, two year old dog. Here was not the typical path to becoming a writer. But it’s a good one, and one full of great stories.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Hudson Mohawk Press LLC
• Release date: Mar 14, 2015
• ISBN: 9781940124032

Mary Kay Bullard

Mary Kay Bullard was born Mary Kathryn Calabro, in Lead, South Dakota. Her parents were implants from completely different parts of the country. Gregory was from Fulton, New York, and came to the Black Hills of South Dakota on a wrestling scholarship. Tricia was an ex-nun with a teaching degree from Scott City, Kansas. Greg married the beautiful farmer’s daughter and raised his family in Lead, frequently bringing his two daughters back to Fulton, New York, so they could be around his family and Italian-American culture. These frequent visits "home" went on for many years, until Greg’s mother, Kathryn, died and the visits became less and less, and shorter and shorter.Mary Kay is the oldest of two girls. She loved the visits to New York and would often protest quite profusely when it would come time to leave her beloved Grandma and Great Aunts. They told her she should be a lawyer, the way she could lay out an argument!After graduating from Lead High School, Mary Kay followed her mother’s footsteps into the convent. But the convent kicked her out and she went to a technical college in Rapid City, South Dakota, focusing on getting started on that law degree her Grandma and Aunts wanted her to pursue. At the ripe old age of twenty she married Andrew Bullard, a nice, tall boy from El Paso, Texas, and approximately nine months later they had their only child together, Sean. Sean’s arrival put a temporary delay on Mary Kay's education so she did not graduate with a pre-law degree until Sean was three. Mary Kay began seeking employment as a paralegal after her graduation and received many lovely rejection letters. The only yes came from the current director of the Deadwood Library in South Dakota.Mary Kay worked many happy years at the Deadwood Library as a children’s librarian/event planner/ personal assistant, while raising Sean, who is truly a child raised in libraries. Andrew became a union pipefitter and traveled a lot, but tried to come home on weekends when he was working nearby.Andrew’s closest nearby location was a small town in Eastern Montana called Colstrip. When the job of Director of the public library in Colstrip opened up, Andrew asked Mary Kay to apply. She did, she got it, and the small family moved to Colstrip.Two years later, Andrew, Mary Kay and Sean started a relationship with Tia, Andrew’s daughter from a previous relationship. As they became closer, Tia visited more often and a major decision was made and Tia moved to Colstrip to live with them.Mary Kay now lives in Colstrip, Montana, with her husband of seventeen years, two teenagers, and one, two year old dog. This is not the typical path to becoming a writer. But it’s a good one, and one full of great stories.

Book preview

The Curcuruto Girls

by

Mary Kay Bullard

Hudson Mohawk Press

Troy, NY

Hudson Mohawk Press LLC

400 Broadway #1726

Troy, New York 12180

www.hudsonmohawkpress.com

www.facebook.com/hudsonmohawkpress

Copyright © 2015 by Mary Kay Bullard

All rights reserved.

The cover photograph is from the author's collection.

From left to right, standing: the sisters Nancy, Josie, Anna, Kathryn and Carmella

Pictured sitting: parents Maria and Onofrio

eISBN 978-1-940124-03-2

CONTENTS

Title Page

Copyright

Introduction

Carmella

Kathryn

Kathryn's Choice

Kathryn in New York: What Really Matters

Anna

Nancy

Josie

INTRODUCTION

Carmella, Kathryn, Anna, Nancy and Josephine were five sisters who grew up in Fulton, New York, the daughters of Onofrio and Mary (Maria) Curcuruto who immigrated to America from Sicily. All five became amazing women who told fantastic stories. I had the wonderful opportunity to be in their family. Although it does not seem like much of a blessing, as Kathryn's granddaughter I also had the opportunity to be one of the first to start the grieving process when Kathryn became the first of the sisters to pass away. I realized one day that these amazing ladies would be gone, and they would stop telling stories. So I would sit with my great-aunts and listen to them remember and talk.

These stories are threads of fiction. What that means is they are based very loosely on true stories about the sisters in their youth. The story about Kathryn is actually based on the only time I was in trouble with her. My grandfather, Anthony, visited New York one summer and I was very rude to him. He made the comment, Well, you definitely look like a Curcuruto. I responded, Thank God for that. Grandma glared at me and told me to follow her into the kitchen. She did not embarrass me in front of him. When I sat down at the table she looked very sad. What she said next has become a life motto: "Never say anything that gives you five seconds of pleasure, and five years of regret."

We all have those five second moments. I struggle with them daily because like my grandfather I have a very dry sense of humor and a quick tongue. I honestly don’t know how Grandma was always so kind, or how she was able to be so in tune with other people's