June 17, 2018
Here's a little more background on the Vigliotti family. I met them when I was a missionary in 1993 and had several occasions to spend time with this family. As missionaries we worked closely with Dominico Vigliotti at church, and then we also started teaching his mother-in-law the missionary discussions so we were over at their house quite a bit. His wife Maria is an amazing cook so we didn't mind spending a little extra time at their house. They have a son named Franco who is married to an American named Emily and they had a little baby named Ashley when I was a missionary. Ashley is now a doctor in residency and has been married for over a year, and I am feeling old. They have a son named Fabio who was probably about 16 when I met him and a daughter named Noemi who was about 14. Maria's mom was baptized into the LDS church shortly after I was transferred out of the city.
I first returned to their house in 1994 with my friend Josh when we were backpacking around Europe a year after I finished my mission. Then Becky and I got married in 1995, and decided to travel in Europe in 1997 before we had a mortgage payment or any kids yet. We used the Vigliotti's house as a homebase, and we would come back to rest up there before heading out to see new things. Becky quickly grew to love this family as much as I do. Both Fabio and Noemi had opportunities to travel in the US, and when they came to visit us, we were able to show them around California some. I went back in 1999 for Noemi's wedding, but Becky decided not to go since our first baby Alex was only five months old. Franco, Emily and their family actually lived in Southern California for three years when he was working at Cal Tech. We were able to see them a few times while they were here as well as Dominico and Maria when they came out to visit.
My favorite memory of the Vigliotti family was when my mom passed away. Dominico and Maria just happened to be in southern California at the time visiting Franco's family. They and Franco's family all drove up to Northern California to come to my mom's funeral. My mom had also served a French-speaking mission, and I asked them if they would be willing to sing the hymn Je Sais Qu'il Vit, Mon Redempteur (I Know that my Redeemer Lives) in French at my mom's funeral. That was one of the most spiritual experiences of my life and something that I will always be grateful for.
Our whole family went back to Switzerland in 2008 for Fabio's wedding, and I have been looking for a way to get back there now for a decade. The Vigliottis are truly like my own family, and it makes me happy to have Zac, Katie and Dee visit them especially now that Zac and Katie will remember them better.
So our first day in Switzerland, we went to church with them and spent time catching up and eating Maria's amazing cooking.
No comments:
Post a Comment