Latest news with #SterlingHeightsPublicLibrary
Toronto Sun
16 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Toronto Sun
1953 wedding photo discovered in library book: ‘Lost & found love story'
Published Jun 12, 2025 • 4 minute read Frank and Josephine Ruggirello on their wedding day, Sept. 26, 1953, with Frank Ruggirello's aunt and uncle. The photo was found in a donated book at Sterling Heights Public Library. MUST CREDIT: Sterling Heights Public Library jpg On her first day volunteering at a public library in Sterling Heights, Michigan, Helen Poniatowski was flipping through a donated book when something unusual caught her eye: a timeworn wedding photo tucked between the pages. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account 'I thought, 'Oh, what a shame. Here's this nice wedding photograph and we don't know anything about it,' ' said Poniatowski, 87, who, along with other volunteers, checks donated books for copyright details and forgotten items. 'People leave things in them,' she explained. She was so taken by the photo – showing a bride and groom, as well as two wedding guests – that she couldn't recall which book it had come from. On the back of the photo, she saw the handwritten names 'Frank & Josephine Ruggirello.' In the hope of returning the photo to a family member, Poniatowski passed it photo along to her colleague, who brought it to the Sterling Heights Public Library's administration office. Staff got straight to work tracking down the Ruggirello family. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'Wedding photographs are so meaningful, and we just thought it was worth a try to reunite it with its rightful owner,' said Anneliese White, public relations and programs coordinator at the library. White shared the photo on the library's Facebook page. 'We found this beautiful wedding photo tucked inside a book donated to our Used, But Sterling Bookstore this past Saturday,' the library posted on Facebook on June 3. 'Now, we're on a mission to reunite it with its rightful family.' 'Do you recognize the happy couple or know who this memory might belong to?' the post continued. 'Help us give this story the happy ending it deserves.' The used-book store raises $40,000 to $50,000 each year to support library programming and other items, including a mobile library. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Within a few hours of the library's post, Sarah Ruggirello – the granddaughter of the bride and groom – was tagged in the Facebook post by a childhood friend who noticed their shared last name. 'As soon as I looked at the picture, I recognized my grandma and grandpa,' said Ruggirello, 36. 'I was completely stunned.' Frank and Josephine Ruggirello on their wedding day, Sept. 26, 1953. (Family photo) jpg Her grandparents – Frank and Josephine Ruggirello – were both first-generation Sicilian Americans. They got married in Detroit on Sept. 26, 1953. Over their 67-year marriage, they had five children, nine grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. Frank died in 2020, Josephine in 2023. 'They were so proud of their Sicilian heritage and family traditions,' Ruggirello said. 'They were such a huge presence in my life, and they valued family and togetherness above all.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Ruggirello said her family has felt a void since losing its matriarch and patriarch. 'We miss them so much, and it was just so cool and out of the blue to have this reminder of them,' said Ruggirello, who lives in Macomb County, Michigan. 'It felt like it was them checking in and saying, 'Hi, everybody!' ' The other couple in the photo is Ruggirello's great-great aunt and uncle, both of whom died before Ruggirello was born. Coincidentally, the couple's granddaughter also saw the Facebook post and reached out. She told Ruggirello the book was donated by her father, who has a habit of using photos as bookmarks. 'My dad has such a big family, and I've met a lot over the years but there's a ton of distant cousins and relatives, and we've all been connecting through this reminder of my grandparents,' Ruggirello said. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Ruggirello went to the library on June 4 to retrieve the photo, and WXYZ Channel 7 was there to capture it. The library updated its post and wrote: 'Lost & found love story' 'It was a very meaningful moment because she said her and her family had never seen this photo,' White said. 'I had tears in my eyes.' It was emotional for Ruggirello, too. 'It was such an unexpected reminder of them,' she said. On Sundays, Ruggirello's grandparents would host dinner for the extended family, and Josephine would make her famous pasta with meatballs, as well as chocolate chip cookies. On each of their grandchildren's birthdays, Josephine and Frank would call and sing them the happy birthday song. And every Valentine's Day, Josephine would give each grandchild a care package filled with her sugar cookies, which she called 'love ya' cookies. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'Even when my cousins and I were at college, she would spend all this money to ship them to us,' Ruggirello said. Her grandfather was a truck driver, Ruggirello said, and he worked hard to set an example for his children and grandchildren. Frank and Josephine Ruggirello, center, with their children and grandchildren. (Family photo) jpg 'They really valued education, and they both came from very humble beginnings and were not able to go to college themselves,' Ruggirello said. 'They were so proud of the fact that all five children graduated from Michigan State University.' When Frank was still alive, the family would attend a Michigan State football game together every year. 'My grandfather was a huge sports fan,' Ruggirello said. Beyond the fond memories, Ruggirello said the resurfaced photo has also reminded her of the goodness in people. 'It would have been so easy to throw it in the trash and go on with their day,' she said. 'The fact that they took the time to post it and look for us, that meant so much.' Ruggirello plans to frame the photo in her home. 'They were the sweetest,' she said of her grandparents. 'They would've gotten a huge kick out of this entire thing.' World Celebrity World Sunshine Girls Sunshine Girls
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Watch: Library returns 1953 wedding photo found in book to couple's family
June 10 (UPI) -- A volunteer at a Michigan library found a wedding photo from the 1950s inside a book and the facility was able to return the precious picture to the couple's granddaughter. The Sterling Heights Public Library said on social media that the photo, labeled "Frank and Josephine Ruggirello, Nana-Nono," was found inside a tome donated to the library's Used, But Sterling Bookstore. "One of my childhood friends who I haven't spoken to in years tagged me in this post, and so I read the post from the Sterling Heights Public Library," Sarah Ruggirello told WXYZ-TV. "And she recognized my last name in it and said 'Hey, are these some family members of yours?'" Ruggirello confirmed the photo was from her grandparents' Detroit wedding on Sept. 26, 1953. Frank Ruggirello died in 2020, and Josephine died in 2023. The couple had been married for 67 years. Sarah Ruggirello said the photo is now a family treasure. "My dad and I have never seen this exact photo before. We didn't know this exact photo existed," Ruggirello said. "I think now I'm going to frame it and display it somewhere in my house just because this was such a cool story and such a cool thing that happened."
UPI
2 days ago
- General
- UPI
Watch: Library returns 1953 wedding photo found in book to couple's family
June 10 (UPI) -- A volunteer at a Michigan library found a wedding photo from the 1950s inside a book and the facility was able to return the precious picture to the couple's granddaughter. The Sterling Heights Public Library said on social media that the photo, labeled "Frank and Josephine Ruggirello, Nana-Nono," was found inside a tome donated to the library's Used, But Sterling Bookstore. "One of my childhood friends who I haven't spoken to in years tagged me in this post, and so I read the post from the Sterling Heights Public Library," Sarah Ruggirello told WXYZ-TV. "And she recognized my last name in it and said 'Hey, are these some family members of yours?'" Ruggirello confirmed the photo was from her grandparents' Detroit wedding on Sept. 26, 1953. Frank Ruggirello died in 2020, and Josephine died in 2023. The couple had been married for 67 years. Sarah Ruggirello said the photo is now a family treasure. "My dad and I have never seen this exact photo before. We didn't know this exact photo existed," Ruggirello said. "I think now I'm going to frame it and display it somewhere in my house just because this was such a cool story and such a cool thing that happened."
