StoryCorps: Dot and Kim Campi

From: StoryCorps
Series: StoryCorps
Length: 01:53

Dot and Kim Campi talk about blending their families when Dot married Kim's father in the early 1960s. Read the full description.

Piece Audio

Playing: StoryCorps: Dot and Kim Campi
From: StoryCorps

Storycorps_small In the early 1960s, Dot Romano was divorced and raising her daughter alone when she met Ronnie Campi. He was a widower and father of five.

Within two years of meeting each other, the pair were married.

In this piece, Kim Campi, one of the five children from Ronnie's first marriage, asks Dot how she met her father.

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Piece Description

In the early 1960s, Dot Romano was divorced and raising her daughter alone when she met Ronnie Campi. He was a widower and father of five.

Within two years of meeting each other, the pair were married.

In this piece, Kim Campi, one of the five children from Ronnie's first marriage, asks Dot how she met her father.

Transcript

DC: A friend that I work with said to me "Oh Dot you gotta meet this great guy, just recently widowed and he's lonely...' And I said 'Okay.'

And so we met. And I don't know how it came about but he said he was looking for a mother for his 5 kids. I said 'Don't look at me, what do I want with 5 more kids.' But I fell hard and deep. And several people said to me 'You're marrying this guy and he has 5 kids, what are you crazy?' And I said 'Well I love him so much, I'll learn to love those kids.' And then as the marriage progressed I used to tell him quite often, 'You know Ronnie, you're lucky you had these kids cause I never would have stayed here without them.'

KC: Do you remember when you first met me?

DC: Yes, and I don't know if you'll remember this but you and David used to call me lady. It was 'lady. Lady.' And one of the cutest things is that you used to say: 'You know lady,...
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