Secrets & Promises ~ Characters

My ancestors are waiting. 
  
They are staring down at me from the wall of my living room begging for their story to be told.
   In 1924, in a little town called San Diego, a ragged looking man walks into my grandfather’s diner and orders the Hungry Man Special.
   “Meaning no disrespect,” my grandfather says, “but how do you intend to pay for this meal?”
   The customer’s dignity is offended. “I may look like a beggar but that doesn’t mean I am one. See these hands? Paint, not dirt. I am painting the murals at Our Lady of The Rosary Catholic Church. You have heard of it, no?
  
A friendship begins. A deal is struck. The Venetian painter, Fausto Tasca agrees to paint my ancestor’s for fifty dollars and all the rib-eye steaks he can eat.
  
The inspiration for my novel comes from this story. They are immigrants, these ancestors: flawed but brave, determined if not lucky. They see hardship as a challenge, not a deterrent, and success as a goal to be pursued at any cost.
   Once mere pigment on canvas, these ancestors have become characters I am proud to know…and love. Let me introduce them to you….

The Adventure Begins  -  from Italy to San Diego