Zach's Family History

1. Zach's Family History The Bubniak-Panepucci family came from only Europe. Grandpa Bill's family came from Ukraine. Grandma Margaret came from Scotland. Grandpa Firpo is from Italia or in English Italy. Grandma Lois' family is from Finland. All of our family came here for two purposes—freedom and opportunities.

2. Panepucci FamilyGrandpa Firpo Grandpa Firpo was born in Italy. He worked at his family's farm providing everything they had. They grew their own wheat and milked their own cattle. They had people plant the vegetables, but they did everything else. They grew potatoes, wheat, grapes, and everything else they needed. Grandpa Firpo's family did not have any machines, but a couple of time a month, a man came by with his separation machine. The machine separated the hay from the wheat. If they didn't have money to pay the man, they would give him part of their crop harvest.

3. Grandpa Firpo in America Grandpa Firpo moved to America once World War II was over when he was 14 years old. When Grandpa Firpo came here from Italy, he came on a big ship. Its capacity was about 1,000 people. It took six weeks to get from Italy to the U.S. When he got here, his dad was waiting at Ellis Island for him. Ellis Island is an immigration station in New York near the Statue of Liberty. Everyone in his family, except for his mother, were already U.S. Citizens. When Grandpa Firpo was 14 years old, he started school again in the 4th grade since he did not know one bit of English. He had a lot of friends even though he didn't understand what they were saying. He could only speak in Italian. Except for the Italian Americans, no one could understand what they were saying. The Americans were nice to Grandpa Firpo.

4. Grandpa Firpo'sFirst Jobs in America After Grandpa Firpo was here for a year or two, his brother and he got a paper route. When he graduated from high school, he went to work on welding at a Ford factory. Workers used to bring in hot peppers to see which might be too hot for him. None he ate were too hot.

5. Grandpa Firpo'sJob as a Plumber When Grandpa Firpo got laid off from Ford, he went to work for a plumber. His family needed a hot water heater. A guy came over to install it. Grandpa Firpo asked him if he needed someone to work there. They gave him a job making $1.25 per hour. When Grandpa Firpo married Grandma Lois, the plumber gave him a $0.25 raise, which meant that he made $60 a week for working 40 hours. Sometimes he worked overtime and they did not even pay him.

6. Firpo the Baker After Grandpa Firpo worked for the plumber, he worked at Ford. When he got laid off from his job, Grandpa Firpo's brother-in-law got him a job in a bakery. He worked there until the bakery closed 10 years later. Then he went to work for another bakery called Hostess. He made cupcakes, ding dongs, small pies, and Twinkies. He would bring home special birthday cakes for my mom, Aunt Karen, and Uncle Michael. The cakes were decorated with all sorts of designs and little characters.

7. Grandma Lois' Family Origins All of her grandma's ancestors came from Finland. Her grandparents were born in Finland, but her parents were born in the United States. Grandma Lois' grandparents from her father's side were wealthy landowners in Finland. Her other grandparents were farmers in Finland. When they came to the U.S., they were farmers. Grandma Lois' aunt had her family traced back to the 1600's. She did have a relative named Hans Brinker, but it may not be the famous one we read about today. I do not know what our relative Hans Brinker did for a living.

8. Grandma Lois' Life in America Grandma Lois was born in the United States in Ontonagon, Michigan. Her family was very poor. When she was 13 years old, she got her first job. It was doing office work for a car dealership. Her next job was at a hotel. She was the executive secretary for the sales manager. After that, she started working at Ford Motor Company. Grandma Lois took time off after that to raise my mom, Aunt Karen, and Uncle Michael. She also worked part time at a few jobs that included: She typed financial statements and typed court testimony.

9. Bubniak FamilyGrandma Margaret Grandma Margaret was born in Edinburgh, Scotland. When she was in her early 20's, Grandma Margaret helped with the War by gathering food for the soldiers and pilots. She came to the United States when she was about 28 years old. She spoke English but it was with a Scottish accent. She met Grandpa Bill through mutual friends. She worked at Chrysler where Grandpa Bill also worked. She died when she was 73 years old.

10. Grandpa Bill's Family, Early Life, and First Job Grandpa Bill's family immigrated from Europe, and they settled in Pennsylvania. Grandpa Bill's dad worked in the coal mines. Then, they moved to Michigan so Grandpa Bill's father could work at the Chrysler Corp. Grandpa Bill was born in Hamtramck. He does not think that he was born in a hospital. Grandpa and his family all had running water when they were living in the U.S. Just like his father, Grandpa Bill worked at the Chrysler Corp.

11. Grandpa Bill's Military Career Grandpa Bill volunteered to be a soldier in WW II when he graduated from high school. Before he went in the service, he also had shots and took medications to prevent malaria and other diseases. Grandpa Bill knew about the U.K.'s famous Spitfire planes. He helped B29's prepare for using nuclear bombs on Japan, but he did not know how to fly. He helped propeller planes fly up to do battle and come down from battle. They did not have jet planes back in the day. Grandpa Bill did not meet any famous pilots, but he met ordinary people who were doing their duty to protect their country. Some of the people that he met in the Army obtained medals.

12. Grandpa Bill's Life in the United States after WW2 After the War, Grandpa went to college. He graduated with a good degree in engineering. Grandpa Bill bought a used car for $600. $100 would be 1/6 of what you could get a used car with. Also, with $100 you could buy a feast for about 15 people. With $20, you could buy a nice bike, a nice suit, or four or five pairs of shoes. After college he worked as an engineer for GM until he retired in about 1984.

13. The End Pic by:http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/features/green/2009/05/baltimore_is_endeavoring_to_do.html