Norman J. Pene was born in San Mateo, CA.
His parents:
*Frederick Pene
*Nina Orecchia
His Marternal Grandparents:
*Giuseppe Orecchia, Piemonte, Italy
*Luigia Grana, Piemonte, Italy
His Paternal Grandparents:
*Giovanni Battista Pene, Piemonte, Italy
*Teresa Nebbia, Piemonte, Italy
As a young child in the 1940's Norman and his family lived in San Jose, CA. He had many fond memories of living there and back then his Maternal side Nonna (Louisa Orecchia) lived just a few miles away with her son, Norm's uncle, John B. Orecchia. Norman always called his Uncle, "Barba" which means Uncle in the Piemontese dialect. Even for other Italians, Piemontese sounds quite a bit different. Barba in standard Italian means beard, correct Italian for Uncle would be Zio. The word for Aunt in Piemontese is Nena, in standard Italian it's Zia.
When Norman was of pre-school age he only spoke Piemontese, and that's all he heard back then in the family. And when he first went to school he could not understand English. He learned fast and by the end of the year he was fluent in English.
Growing up Norm was very close with his Nonna who was from the town of Castello di Annone in the Piemonte region of Northern Italy. Norm only knew his maternal grandmother, his three other grandparents had died many years before he was born. In the early 1950's Nonna sold her house and moved in with Norm and his parents. She would stay with them for the rest of her years.
Nonna was an honored member of the family and loved by all of us.
In the early 50's Norm's father moved the family to Redwood City and they bought a house on Iris Street. Uncle Freddy went into business with Norm's Barba, buying the "Top Hat Bar" on El Camino. They stayed in Redwood City for a few years while Uncle Freddie was partners in the Bar.
After selling the Top Hat, Uncle Freddy moved the family to Los Altos, Ca. And they would stay there for many years. Los Altos was much different back in the 50's and Norm enjoyed growing up there.
Norm attended Los Altos High School and graduated in 1962.
Norm always loved fast cars and in 1967 he bought his pride and joy, a white w/red interior 1967 Olds 442, 4speed, posi-traction, high performance, big block V8. He special ordered the car from "Riggs Oldsmobile" in Redwood City. And that was right at the peak of the Muscle Car era of the 1960's. And Norm made full use of all that horse-power.
Norm loved cars but he only owned 3 cars in his lifetime, a 1959 Chevy Impala, 1967 442 and a 1972 Cutlass.
Norm became a self-trained auto mechanic and did all his own auto repairs and maintenence.
Another love of Norm's from an early age was avionics. He wanted to become a pilot but he never got the chance to fulfill that desire.
He would have made a very good pilot, for sure.
Norm worked for Lenkurt Electronics in the 1960's. While working there his father in 1966 bought the "Manor Bottle Shop" in San Mateo. Norm then went to work with his father in the family store.
In 1968 Norm's father would suffer a massive heart attack one morning and pass away a few hours later. This was quite a shock for everybody in the family and now Norm was left to run the business. He was only 25.
The business was not doing well and was badly in debt. Norm did not know how bad things were till the book-keeper told him that they could not stay in business much longer owing as much as they did to all their suppliers.
Once Norm heard this he pulled out his life savings and paid off all the debts and got the store back into the black. He laid off the help and he worked 12 hours a day, 6 days a week to get the business back on track.
Not bad for a 25 year old young man.
During these hard times, Norman's Barba (John Orecchia) came in and showed what a great guy he was by helping Norm in the store. Barba in the begining went down there everynight to help Norm get the store running right.
Barba then would work there for many years, working the whole 12 hour shift every Tuesday so Norm could have one day off a week. Back then the hours were from 10am to 10pm. Barba would do this till Norm and Aunt Nina sold the store in the early 1980's.
After selling the store, Norm and Aunt Nina retired and stayed in Los Altos.
Norm during his retirement did a little freelance auto repair work on the side to keep busy and make some extra money.
Rest in Peace, Norm,
From your cousin Joe
His parents:
*Frederick Pene
*Nina Orecchia
His Marternal Grandparents:
*Giuseppe Orecchia, Piemonte, Italy
*Luigia Grana, Piemonte, Italy
His Paternal Grandparents:
*Giovanni Battista Pene, Piemonte, Italy
*Teresa Nebbia, Piemonte, Italy
As a young child in the 1940's Norman and his family lived in San Jose, CA. He had many fond memories of living there and back then his Maternal side Nonna (Louisa Orecchia) lived just a few miles away with her son, Norm's uncle, John B. Orecchia. Norman always called his Uncle, "Barba" which means Uncle in the Piemontese dialect. Even for other Italians, Piemontese sounds quite a bit different. Barba in standard Italian means beard, correct Italian for Uncle would be Zio. The word for Aunt in Piemontese is Nena, in standard Italian it's Zia.
When Norman was of pre-school age he only spoke Piemontese, and that's all he heard back then in the family. And when he first went to school he could not understand English. He learned fast and by the end of the year he was fluent in English.
Growing up Norm was very close with his Nonna who was from the town of Castello di Annone in the Piemonte region of Northern Italy. Norm only knew his maternal grandmother, his three other grandparents had died many years before he was born. In the early 1950's Nonna sold her house and moved in with Norm and his parents. She would stay with them for the rest of her years.
Nonna was an honored member of the family and loved by all of us.
In the early 50's Norm's father moved the family to Redwood City and they bought a house on Iris Street. Uncle Freddy went into business with Norm's Barba, buying the "Top Hat Bar" on El Camino. They stayed in Redwood City for a few years while Uncle Freddie was partners in the Bar.
After selling the Top Hat, Uncle Freddy moved the family to Los Altos, Ca. And they would stay there for many years. Los Altos was much different back in the 50's and Norm enjoyed growing up there.
Norm attended Los Altos High School and graduated in 1962.
Norm always loved fast cars and in 1967 he bought his pride and joy, a white w/red interior 1967 Olds 442, 4speed, posi-traction, high performance, big block V8. He special ordered the car from "Riggs Oldsmobile" in Redwood City. And that was right at the peak of the Muscle Car era of the 1960's. And Norm made full use of all that horse-power.
Norm loved cars but he only owned 3 cars in his lifetime, a 1959 Chevy Impala, 1967 442 and a 1972 Cutlass.
Norm became a self-trained auto mechanic and did all his own auto repairs and maintenence.
Another love of Norm's from an early age was avionics. He wanted to become a pilot but he never got the chance to fulfill that desire.
He would have made a very good pilot, for sure.
Norm worked for Lenkurt Electronics in the 1960's. While working there his father in 1966 bought the "Manor Bottle Shop" in San Mateo. Norm then went to work with his father in the family store.
In 1968 Norm's father would suffer a massive heart attack one morning and pass away a few hours later. This was quite a shock for everybody in the family and now Norm was left to run the business. He was only 25.
The business was not doing well and was badly in debt. Norm did not know how bad things were till the book-keeper told him that they could not stay in business much longer owing as much as they did to all their suppliers.
Once Norm heard this he pulled out his life savings and paid off all the debts and got the store back into the black. He laid off the help and he worked 12 hours a day, 6 days a week to get the business back on track.
Not bad for a 25 year old young man.
During these hard times, Norman's Barba (John Orecchia) came in and showed what a great guy he was by helping Norm in the store. Barba in the begining went down there everynight to help Norm get the store running right.
Barba then would work there for many years, working the whole 12 hour shift every Tuesday so Norm could have one day off a week. Back then the hours were from 10am to 10pm. Barba would do this till Norm and Aunt Nina sold the store in the early 1980's.
After selling the store, Norm and Aunt Nina retired and stayed in Los Altos.
Norm during his retirement did a little freelance auto repair work on the side to keep busy and make some extra money.
Rest in Peace, Norm,
From your cousin Joe
Norman J. Pene was born in San Mateo, CA.
His parents:
*Frederick Pene
*Nina Orecchia
His Marternal Grandparents:
*Giuseppe Orecchia, Piemonte, Italy
*Luigia Grana, Piemonte, Italy
His Paternal Grandparents:
*Giovanni Battista Pene, Piemonte, Italy
*Teresa Nebbia, Piemonte, Italy
As a young child in the 1940's Norman and his family lived in San Jose, CA. He had many fond memories of living there and back then his Maternal side Nonna (Louisa Orecchia) lived just a few miles away with her son, Norm's uncle, John B. Orecchia. Norman always called his Uncle, "Barba" which means Uncle in the Piemontese dialect. Even for other Italians, Piemontese sounds quite a bit different. Barba in standard Italian means beard, correct Italian for Uncle would be Zio. The word for Aunt in Piemontese is Nena, in standard Italian it's Zia.
When Norman was of pre-school age he only spoke Piemontese, and that's all he heard back then in the family. And when he first went to school he could not understand English. He learned fast and by the end of the year he was fluent in English.
Growing up Norm was very close with his Nonna who was from the town of Castello di Annone in the Piemonte region of Northern Italy. Norm only knew his maternal grandmother, his three other grandparents had died many years before he was born. In the early 1950's Nonna sold her house and moved in with Norm and his parents. She would stay with them for the rest of her years.
Nonna was an honored member of the family and loved by all of us.
In the early 50's Norm's father moved the family to Redwood City and they bought a house on Iris Street. Uncle Freddy went into business with Norm's Barba, buying the "Top Hat Bar" on El Camino. They stayed in Redwood City for a few years while Uncle Freddie was partners in the Bar.
After selling the Top Hat, Uncle Freddy moved the family to Los Altos, Ca. And they would stay there for many years. Los Altos was much different back in the 50's and Norm enjoyed growing up there.
Norm attended Los Altos High School and graduated in 1962.
Norm always loved fast cars and in 1967 he bought his pride and joy, a white w/red interior 1967 Olds 442, 4speed, posi-traction, high performance, big block V8. He special ordered the car from "Riggs Oldsmobile" in Redwood City. And that was right at the peak of the Muscle Car era of the 1960's. And Norm made full use of all that horse-power.
Norm loved cars but he only owned 3 cars in his lifetime, a 1959 Chevy Impala, 1967 442 and a 1972 Cutlass.
Norm became a self-trained auto mechanic and did all his own auto repairs and maintenence.
Another love of Norm's from an early age was avionics. He wanted to become a pilot but he never got the chance to fulfill that desire.
He would have made a very good pilot, for sure.
Norm worked for Lenkurt Electronics in the 1960's. While working there his father in 1966 bought the "Manor Bottle Shop" in San Mateo. Norm then went to work with his father in the family store.
In 1968 Norm's father would suffer a massive heart attack one morning and pass away a few hours later. This was quite a shock for everybody in the family and now Norm was left to run the business. He was only 25.
The business was not doing well and was badly in debt. Norm did not know how bad things were till the book-keeper told him that they could not stay in business much longer owing as much as they did to all their suppliers.
Once Norm heard this he pulled out his life savings and paid off all the debts and got the store back into the black. He laid off the help and he worked 12 hours a day, 6 days a week to get the business back on track.
Not bad for a 25 year old young man.
During these hard times, Norman's Barba (John Orecchia) came in and showed what a great guy he was by helping Norm in the store. Barba in the begining went down there everynight to help Norm get the store running right.
Barba then would work there for many years, working the whole 12 hour shift every Tuesday so Norm could have one day off a week. Back then the hours were from 10am to 10pm. Barba would do this till Norm and Aunt Nina sold the store in the early 1980's.
After selling the store, Norm and Aunt Nina retired and stayed in Los Altos.
Norm during his retirement did a little freelance auto repair work on the side to keep busy and make some extra money.
Rest in Peace, Norm,
From your cousin Joe
His parents:
*Frederick Pene
*Nina Orecchia
His Marternal Grandparents:
*Giuseppe Orecchia, Piemonte, Italy
*Luigia Grana, Piemonte, Italy
His Paternal Grandparents:
*Giovanni Battista Pene, Piemonte, Italy
*Teresa Nebbia, Piemonte, Italy
As a young child in the 1940's Norman and his family lived in San Jose, CA. He had many fond memories of living there and back then his Maternal side Nonna (Louisa Orecchia) lived just a few miles away with her son, Norm's uncle, John B. Orecchia. Norman always called his Uncle, "Barba" which means Uncle in the Piemontese dialect. Even for other Italians, Piemontese sounds quite a bit different. Barba in standard Italian means beard, correct Italian for Uncle would be Zio. The word for Aunt in Piemontese is Nena, in standard Italian it's Zia.
When Norman was of pre-school age he only spoke Piemontese, and that's all he heard back then in the family. And when he first went to school he could not understand English. He learned fast and by the end of the year he was fluent in English.
Growing up Norm was very close with his Nonna who was from the town of Castello di Annone in the Piemonte region of Northern Italy. Norm only knew his maternal grandmother, his three other grandparents had died many years before he was born. In the early 1950's Nonna sold her house and moved in with Norm and his parents. She would stay with them for the rest of her years.
Nonna was an honored member of the family and loved by all of us.
In the early 50's Norm's father moved the family to Redwood City and they bought a house on Iris Street. Uncle Freddy went into business with Norm's Barba, buying the "Top Hat Bar" on El Camino. They stayed in Redwood City for a few years while Uncle Freddie was partners in the Bar.
After selling the Top Hat, Uncle Freddy moved the family to Los Altos, Ca. And they would stay there for many years. Los Altos was much different back in the 50's and Norm enjoyed growing up there.
Norm attended Los Altos High School and graduated in 1962.
Norm always loved fast cars and in 1967 he bought his pride and joy, a white w/red interior 1967 Olds 442, 4speed, posi-traction, high performance, big block V8. He special ordered the car from "Riggs Oldsmobile" in Redwood City. And that was right at the peak of the Muscle Car era of the 1960's. And Norm made full use of all that horse-power.
Norm loved cars but he only owned 3 cars in his lifetime, a 1959 Chevy Impala, 1967 442 and a 1972 Cutlass.
Norm became a self-trained auto mechanic and did all his own auto repairs and maintenence.
Another love of Norm's from an early age was avionics. He wanted to become a pilot but he never got the chance to fulfill that desire.
He would have made a very good pilot, for sure.
Norm worked for Lenkurt Electronics in the 1960's. While working there his father in 1966 bought the "Manor Bottle Shop" in San Mateo. Norm then went to work with his father in the family store.
In 1968 Norm's father would suffer a massive heart attack one morning and pass away a few hours later. This was quite a shock for everybody in the family and now Norm was left to run the business. He was only 25.
The business was not doing well and was badly in debt. Norm did not know how bad things were till the book-keeper told him that they could not stay in business much longer owing as much as they did to all their suppliers.
Once Norm heard this he pulled out his life savings and paid off all the debts and got the store back into the black. He laid off the help and he worked 12 hours a day, 6 days a week to get the business back on track.
Not bad for a 25 year old young man.
During these hard times, Norman's Barba (John Orecchia) came in and showed what a great guy he was by helping Norm in the store. Barba in the begining went down there everynight to help Norm get the store running right.
Barba then would work there for many years, working the whole 12 hour shift every Tuesday so Norm could have one day off a week. Back then the hours were from 10am to 10pm. Barba would do this till Norm and Aunt Nina sold the store in the early 1980's.
After selling the store, Norm and Aunt Nina retired and stayed in Los Altos.
Norm during his retirement did a little freelance auto repair work on the side to keep busy and make some extra money.
Rest in Peace, Norm,
From your cousin Joe
