The Family Bank Then and Now

The Family Bank Then and Now is based on the life andtimes of the author's grandfather, Americco L. Lagomarsino.His parents came to America from Italy knowing they had jobs waiting for themin Colma, California, which is widely recognized as "the cemetery capital of theworld." The author started his career as a cemetery worker at age twelve.After Americco's mother, Teresa, contracted syphilis from her husband, Louis, shedivorced him and raised her four sons with morals, compassion, and the courageto be real men who treated their wives and children with respect and love.Established in 1926, Wm. Lagomarsino and Company thrived in the real estateand insurance business. Teresa left her children property to subdivide and buildaffordable houses, paving the way for them to embark down a path that led fromrags to riches.A week before the author was born, Americco, formerly the vice president of asavings and loan, opened First National Bank of Daly City.In this book, the author recalls her grandfather's legacy and the pain she enduredgrowing up in a home where family members abused her emotionally, physically,and sexually-and how future generations fought over the fortune he left.