Saturday, July 26, 2008

Pioneer Day and General Meeting July 26th

The July 26 Pioneer Day and General Meeting was held at the St. Therese Church Hall instead of the regular museum site at 203 Second Street due to an inoperable elevator at the museum. The guest speakers were the sister duo of Emily Fonseca Gasperi and Sally Fonseca Patrick. Sally and Emily discussed their lives in the area in earlier times. Emily discussed her home life on nearby Tyler Island and her school experiences, which inspired her to later become involved in education. Sally also discussed her life on Tyler Island and school experiences. Sally also spoke of her early career as a bank employee. Sally and Emily said that when they were enrolled at Isleton Grammar School, staff had a hard time pronouncing their names. Sally's actual name is Celia and Emily's is Emilia. The original family surname is Da Fonseca. The Tyler Island-born sisters engaged several in the audience in discussion.