This morning my great, great Aunt Irene passed away. And all I want to do is make crullers or chrusciki. On my spring break I met my parents in Stickney so that Irene could teach me how to make crullers. I like mine a little over-fried so that they're crispy but they're also good if you fry them the normal amount of time so that they're puffy.
She would have turned 87 this October. Last summer I went out to visit her and got all the information that she had to offer about my dad's side of the family.
Irene Kwietnieski, who would later change her last name to Keith when she started working for the Federal Reserve Bank, was born in Flint, MI, moved to Detroit, and ended up at 35th and Halstead when she was 5 years old. This address was the location of the first bakery that our family owned.
When Irene was five years, she moved to Chicago because both of her parents had died. She went to go live with my great-grandmother, Estelle Nevlida (though at the time she was not yet married to Gustav Nevlida) who worked all day at the bakery, from open at 4am until they closed. Irene couldn't remember what time they closed but she said it was late.
The second bakery was at 18th and Wood. Estelle worked for her Aunt Rose who owned all the bakeries with her husband Hipolite (which was the closest Irene could get to remembering how to spell his name). The second bakery was the fortunate site where Gus Nevlida stopped in for a danish in the morning before he headed off to work. The story goes that he ordered his sweet roll and came back everyday for one until he asked Estelle to marry him.
The third bakery, Irene said, was at Wallace and something. She couldn't remember. I got the impression that this bakery was not open long before Uncle Hipolite's gambling problem caused him to lose all the family's money and subsequently shut down all the bakeries.
By this time Estelle and Gus were married (1932 was their wedding year) and from their first day, in their first apartment, Irene lived with them. They lived at 17th and Wood, then 18th and Wolcott, then Pulaski and Cortland (not very far from where I live right now!), and finally in July of 1959 the three moved to their home on Clinton in Stickney.
It's been 50 years that Irene's been in the house on Clinton Ave. In that time Irene worked, and put herself through business classes, and eventually landed the Vice President position at the Oak Park Bank and Trust.
She was always such a giving person. Nothing could stop her from making sure we left her house with our wallets and pockets full of treats. One of my favorite memories is how we always end our phone conversations. I'd say bye and I love you and she'd emphasized both words: "Love You," like she wanted you to make sure she loved you a little bit more.
Thankfully, she's not suffering anymore. But she will be dearly missed. Her crullers look like this, but better:
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