Monday surrounded by family members and loved ones. Tomorrow, we will lay her to rest beside my grandfather in Staten Island. Grandma Nellie epitomized Italian motherhood with her five children, nine grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren. (Today, I met a distant relative who told me that she treated him like a grandkid too, so let's just round it up to ten for good measure.) Sadly, we will no longer feel the ring of her hearty laugh in our ears. We won't see our joy reflected in her beaming smile. We won't be able taste her glorious cooking. But Grandma Nellie's ebullient and warm demeanor, her incredible empathy, her unparalleled generosity, and her dedicated stewardship of this big, messy Italian family will live on through the legacy of everyone she touched. I've been told I'm a natural caretaker, a good cook, and a halfway-decent dad, but I would be none of those things without my precious Grandma Nellie and Papa Tony, true masters of the art of giving selflessly to their family—and expanding the definition of family to include literally anyone in need of a hug, a laugh, and a generous helping of lasagna.