Stella Majecki
Zukowski MEMORIES
My mother Stella was a very special lady and always had encouraging words not only for me but for everyone she met. My first serious memory of a discussion I had with her was when I was four years old during the WWII war years. I can still see us standing in the hall bathroom on the third floor of 1242 Pinchot Pl. Bronx, NY (Click to view my old neighborhood) I was dressed in my favorite Navy uniform with my sharp looking sailor cap
and mom was explaining the very serious need for rubber to help win the war and the need for everyone to make a sacrifice for the
war. She explained my rubber
pacifier would surely help win the
war. Wait a minute, my most favorite 4 year old friend could help win the
war? Ouch, this would be difficult, but winning the war had to be done,
so reluctantly, I pulled it from my lips and handed it to mom. To this very day
I still remember how proud I was when we won the war over
The
pictures you are seeing in the slide show window are pictures of my mom growing
up, getting married and her life with my father for twenty years before mom asked
for a divorce. My father Vincent loved
her very much but had a hard time keeping up with her mood swings. In the early fifty's doctors didn't know what
to do with Bi-Polar symptoms.
Now on with
my memories of my mother Stella M. Zukowski.
Polish Polka Time. From early 1949 until the mid 60's mom had a her own Sunday morning radio program. Click for the rest of her story.
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Below is a story my mother wrote about her mother and father and what it was like growing up in Bronx, New York in the early 1920's
My Mama by Stella Marie
Majewski Zukowski
There are many things I remember about my Mama, beautiful stories she told me when I was a little girl and she was just a young married woman named
Lodislova Kostrobiec Majewski
Mama was only 16 years old
(1914) when she came to
Before Mama got her sewing job at an orphanage, she used to help her sister Kasia serve meals to the young male boarders. It was soon after, that she met Papa,
Mama used to tell me about
her family who lived in a little village not far from the city of
I remember well when Mama
told me with sparkling eyes and animation in her voice of her memories of when
she prepared for her wedding day to Papa.
At the Orphanage, Mama worked
hard sewing little uniforms for the Jewish Children and saved all the extra
money of the $12.00 a month she made.
In the traditional Polish
style wedding, a Hall and musician were hired for a Sunday afternoon along with
a Polish woman caterer. Polish style
food, Kielbasa, Kapusta, Gulomki, Roasted Chicken and all the accompanying
dishes were selected for the reception.
Mama spent several, days off from
work, excitingly shopping for the traditional white dress, veil, shoes, etc,
etc for her wedding day.
Mama was married on May 12,
1917.
Mama said she was very tired
on her wedding day after all the close supervision, checking to see that
everything was just so.
I was born a year later on
January 31th, 1918 on a bitter, cold Wednesday at 2:00AM. Mama must have been a very patient,
non-complaining Mother to be and Papa must not have been too very much worried
about my arriving too early for Mama tells me I was born and turning blue from
cold before Papa got the old doctor to come and welcome me into this world,
properly. I guess this being Mama's
first baby and her experienced older sister Kasia, mother of several children
was not around to tell Mama to announce her need for the Doctor sooner.
A couple of years later, my
brother Edji was born and then five years more passed quickly and my sister,
Broncia was born. By now things were
going along quite nicely for the Majewski family.
Papa and a close Polish
friend (Komoter), John Sala owned a Garage together where they used to service
and store automobiles. Papa was the envy
of his Polish cronies for he was the very first to view a big, black touring
car. It was black and shiny with chrome
wheels and trim with celloid snap windows.
When I see movies on TV with gangsters driving big black cars in the
prohibition days, it reminds me each time of my Papa's first car.
Oh, the happy, exciting car
trips we made from our Bronx, NY home to our cousins in
Once we got to
The adults would usually sit in the dining room, eating and drinking while all the youngsters would gather in another room. We would put on performances and I remember my cousin, Johnny who was a year older than I putting on a show, acting like
Barney Google with the Goo, Goo, Google eyes. He borrowed a hat belonging to one of our
relatives and a cane and was really singing up a storm, swinging the cane
rather wildly, when suddenly he hit the hanging chandelier. Boy did we kids run and hide for the fear of
our mothers would spank us but when my Cocia came in to see what had happened,
she sweetly told us not to worry, that she could easily replace the broken
lamp.
By now, I was approaching the
age of seven and really should have been going to school but my young, foreign
Mama didn't know the rules and regulations of our young America, that children
were usually registered and attending school at about six years old, until our
neighbors kept seeing me playing outdoors when all the other children were in
school.
Finally they asked Mama why I
wasn't going to school? When she
realized she wasn't doing the right thing, she very quickly adjusted her ways
and in another day or so I was taken to Mother Superior, the principal of a
Catholic school just a few blocks from home.
Here, Mama had to interpret for me for I didn't know many words of
English at the grown age of seven.
As the years went on Mama and
I became close companions. I being the
oldest of the 3 children did much to alleviate work chores for Mama.
When Christmas, Easter and
the other holidays came around, it was always Stasia (me) who used to trim the
Christmas tree, gift wrap presents and make preparations for Santa's arrival.
Mama was a very good mother
always devoted to her children, keeping them amused with stories of when she
was a little girl in
She was always very fond of
going to the movies. In those days, open
air theaters were very popular. They
were held in the back yards of regular, local, movie houses during the summer
months. There was no indoor air
conditioning then.
Just as soon as supper dishes
were done, Papa went to work (He used to work nights at his garage) and Mama,
Edju and Broncia, in her carriage, would happily walk to the nearby open air
theater. Soon we would all be very
engrossed in some popular movie being shown.
Broncia usually fell asleep after the first half hour or so.
When my brother Edju was about 6
years old and a very avid listener of
Bobby Benson who was a very popular radio
personality with young boys and girls of that day. The radio shows advertiser
was H.O. Oats Cereal and promoting saving coupons that were on the back of each
box. Edju, Broncia, and I very eagerly
visited all our neighbors and friends to ask if they would save the H.O. Oats
coupons for Edju.
After several months of
gathering coupons from our very many friends, Edju managed to collect the
necessary five hundred. We bundled the
coupons into a package and excitedly mailed the package to the Oats company. In due time a large parcel arrived for Edward
Majewski containing a 10 gallon cowboy hat, chaps, bright red handkerchief, a
gun and gun holster and even a pair of bright, shining spurs that made a
clinking sound when Edju wore them on his shoes. He sure was the talk of our
neighborhood. All the children would
gather around him and just stare and wish they too had such a grand outfit.
One lovely, sunny, June day,
Mama prepared Broncia for her morning nap.
Since it was such a lovely day, decided to have her sleep outdoors in
her carriage. I was told to wheel her
back and forth until she fell asleep and to watch her in front of out home,
while she napped. My girlfriend, Paulinka
was waiting until Bronia fell asleep so that we could play a game of jacks, one
of our favorite games. A few blocks away
from our house lived a middle aged woman who was mentally retarded. My girlfriend and I were not very nice or
understanding of the poor woman's illness for whenever we would see her in our
area, we would always laugh at her and call her, crazy woman. As she approached us this morning we must
have really annoyed her, for she made a fist at us and looked as though she was
ready to slap us. Boy! Did we start to
run upstairs to hide in the clothes closet calling Mama. When Mama got through apologizing to the
woman and checked that Broncia was still sound asleep, I got a spanking I'll
always remember.
Mama was a very pretty, young
woman. She had fine, small features, a
well proportioned body, rosy, health cheeks and though she wore little or no
make up she always looked attractive.
Many men glanced at her appreciatively.
Papa always worked nights and Mama was sometimes lonely for grown up
company, after house cleaning, cooking, washing and doing the many chores, a
mother has to do with three growing children.
She sometimes liked a little recreation and change from the daily
routine. Mama was very fond of going to
the Movies, so every once in awhile, she would leave me in the care of Edju and
Broncia and go to the close by Movie Theater for two or three hours of make
believe. Romantic love stories were her
favorite.
Were Mama to want any extra
romantic moments in her life besides the ones she had with Papa, it would have
been very possible, for this night while Mama watched the romantic movie a
lonesome sailor sat next to her and when the movies were over, asked Mama if he
wouldn't walk home with her, Which she
agreed to but when they were just a block or so away from our home, he asked
her if he couldn't come up for just a short while, It was then Mama said, she was a mother of 3
children and couldn't possibly invite him in.
When Mama came in that evening, her cheeks were rosy and her eyes had a
special glow, as she told me the story of her disappointed, Sailor friend. Speaking of liking movies, as all of us did,
brings to mind the evening Mama was getting ready to serve dinner. After dinner, just as soon as the dishes were
done, Mama and the three children went to see a Charlie Chaplin comedy at our
nearby Movie House. Edju and I were
pestering Mama as to how much longer before we would be leaving for the movie.
Finally, Mama agreed to let
us hold our Quarters for admission plus some candy. Edju and I were allowed to wait outdoors
until she got ready. I was quite
restless and fidgety and kept putting the quarter in and out of my mouth. All of a sudden a big gulp and my quarter was
gone. Oh my goodness! What ever will I do? Does that mean I won't be able to go to the
movies? I guess that was my biggest concern.
I quickly ran upstairs and told Mama what I had done, she quickly
grabbed me by the hand, left Broncia and Edju with Papa, who had not yet left
for work and took me to the corner Drugstore.
Mr. Wilkes, the Pharmacist, prepared a strong dose of Castor Oil, which
I too while holding my nose. A couple of
hours passed and so did the Quarter.
We didn't get to go the
Movies that evening but we did enjoy the Charlie Chaplin comedy the next day.
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