January 2, 2023

Good Morning Folks,

     It’s with great excitement and promise that we look forward to the new year. Our youngest daughter, Grace Estelle Bernunzio, at 25 years old, has purchased her own home. It is a lovely, small but solid ranch house built in 1950 in the town of East Irondequoit. It is not far from where our daughter Kara lives and where Julie’s parents reside. Now, if you know our family, you know that Grace was the surprise of the last century. She was named Grace Estelle, because we considered her a "gift from God’ but her name literally translates to "thank my lucky stars". At 50 years old, I was not expecting another child! It was not without struggles that she meandered through her childhood. After she graduated high school, she decided she had no interest in college. This was at the same time that we had sold our house on East Avenue. She decided she wanted to get her own apartment, and her own job and live her life according to her own rules. This was not without considerable struggle. There was a time we really feared for her, but this determined young woman turned her life around, negotiated the job market and landed a good paying position at a growing company. She informed us recently that she had saved close to $20,000 and wanted to buy a house. She’s been actively looking for about six months when she found this little gem. East Irondequoit is a town well known to me. It is where my grandparents, as well as scores of other Italian-Americans moved when they exited the center city to become part of mainstream America. Tracts of small homes were built in the 1950s and most were easily negotiated, one floor, "ranch" style. One feature always stood out for those houses occupied by the Italian Americans. There was always a kitchen in the basement! Well, not only does this house have a kitchen in the basement, but it has a little bedroom and a bathroom. Yes, Julie and I now have a place to stay in Rochester. With one foot in the big town again, we will be able to work on the weekends and have a place to stay, should we decide to have an event or performance that runs late.

    My rehabilitation from back surgery is coming along slowly but my Doctor and I are generally pleased with the progress. For the first time since the surgery, I was able to work three days in a row at the store. I have really missed the camaraderie that goes along with being there, and I intend to be working a few days every week. I have progressed slowly from relying solely on a walker, to using a cane. While I am not without pain (I definitely have the "old man" shuffle), I am still able to manage some self-mobility and perform my physical therapy and I have returned to the gym!

   We also have some exciting plans for the store going into the new year. As many of you know, we cut back our store hours to the bare minimum during the pandemic. We have only been open one day a week for walk-in traffic. That model has served us very well during this difficult time. Our online sales really are the core of our business but we also have a commitment to the musical community in Rochester to provide a space and a service that  fills a need of the people. With Julie and I in town a little more often we are planning to bring back our "back room" Saturday jam sessions and workshops as well as our performance space for small concerts and extend our hours for "walk-in" customers. It has always our plan to continually reinvent ourselves, and this is part of the process. More to come in the new year.

Sincerely, 

John Bernunzio.

Grace Estelle Bernunzio….homeowner!! it’s a great house, and it has a nice backyard for her precious little puppy Penny Ann.

Merry Christmas Happy New Year….. it’s with the excitement of these "children" that we look forward to new adventures.

I’m glad the drive home will not always have to be rushed since we’ll have a place to stay in Rochester. Nonetheless, it’s views like this that make that drive so enticing.