Coming From a Family of Patriots

By Jimmy Jensen

My grandfather, Antonio, and his brother, Dominic, arrived in America a century ago. Circumstances forced them to leave their families in the old country. They came to America to be Americans. I still display the portrait of Antonio taken the day he became a United States citizen. He was in a suit and standing in front of a rather large 46-star-spangled banner (before more states were added to the union).

He and Dominic got jobs delivering blocks of ice (in the times pre-refrigeration) during the warm months of the year, and truckloads of coal in the colder times. They both became very muscular due to climbing 20 to 30 flights of stairs with 50-pound blocks of ice slung over their shoulders. For the next three years, the two brothers pooled their money and spent as little as possible while saving for the transit of their families still suffering and dying in the old country. After they were made whole, both families moved from New York to Groton, Connecticut. Their partnership blossomed into a profitable business when they bought their own truck. Antonio’s family grew with the arrival of three daughters, the youngest of whom was my mother. In late 1920, both families moved again, this time to Boston, Massachusetts. They continued to prosper, having that treasured endowment, from God, of their “certain inalienable rights.” Two of the three girls grew up and married soldiers, but the baby girl married a U.S. Navy sailor.

Luigi, my mom’s only brother, tried to serve in World War I, but he was rejected because he was too young. On December 8, 1941, he also tried to enlist to serve in World War II, but he was rejected because he was too old. Fortunately for America, he was a fabulous mechanic and soon went to England, where he worked on a lone B-17 for the duration of the war. He noted that most days, the plane he built came back looking like “Swiss cheese.” On several occasions, his crew had to honorably remove crew members who had made the ultimate sacrifice, and others who were wounded. His plane flew all but about 10 days during the entirety of the war. Some days, the plane required extensive repairs and was unable to fly for a day or two. Only by God’s providence, the plane returned to England each time it went out.

Dad enlisted in the U.S. Navy because of the great pay and benefits: a nice uniform, a place to sleep, three hot meals a day, you get to go all over the world, and all that money! Five dollars every month made Dad wonder what he would do with all that money. He decided to send two dollars every month to his mom. The recruiter informed Dad, “We might send you some place where there’s fellers shooting at you.” Dad asked, “Can I shoot back?” The recruiter said, “Hell yeah! We load ’em, you shoot ’em.” Dad signed up. Dad later met my mom and they got married. Soon, they had a daughter, and two sons. Shortly after World War II started, Dad was sent to Green Cove Springs, Florida, to work on the fleet. Every time he got a ship floating, running, and into battle, he got a medal. He ended up with a chest full of ribbons for “just doing my job,” as he said.

I, like Uncle Luigi, was also rejected for Army service, but I added to the list of rejections: the Air Force, Marine Corps, Navy. Some years later, I noticed a job in the classified ads with only a phone number to call. The job opening was for a math and physics teacher. I figured it was right up my alley, and called. The more I talked to the gentleman, the more interested I became. I asked, “What is the name of your organization?” “The United States Navy.” He said, “You can skip OCS (officer candidate school), lieutenant junior grade, second lieutenant, and we will make you a first lieutenant, if you can be in Orlando, Florida, on Monday morning.” The thought running through my mind was, I would be out-ranking dad on my first day at work, and pulling rank at Christmas dinner. Alas, the Navy ultimately rejected me for health reasons, as I had chronic asthma.

With that phone call came the inspiration on how to best serve America. I decided to go into teaching. I became a journeyman math teacher. I taught at seven different schools over 31 years, helping around 4,000 youngsters develop the ability to think, reason, and follow procedures. I used to take a break in class with a variety of stories that blended into the math lesson of the hour. Eventually, I was made department head, after a bumpy first five years. Then, to my wildest dreams, my students performed above all expectations. For 26 years more, 90 percent of my students passed the state-mandated exam at the end of the year.

With the endowment of rights from God comes certain duties. Yes, my entire family loves America, and will do anythingwe can to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, even at the expense of our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor. Only at death do these duties expire.

This article was originally published in American Essence magazine.