Joseph Natale and his son Greg

Joseph Natale and his son Greg

Interview transcript

JN: I spent a couple of years overcompensating as a father. You know I’d open the refrigerator door and see two gallons of milk, and I’d have to run to the store because we were running short of milk. And buy three more gallons. It was that kind of thing. I was so afraid of not being a good parent and filling in for the missing mother. I did that for a couple of years. I realized that I needed to start doing something for myself as well as my kids. And I began to participate in local theater.

GN: So get to the part when you meet Kelly, Dad.

JN: Well I was hired for a role in a play and Kelly was in the play, and that’s where we met.

GN: You called me up, I think it was a Sunday, and said “I have to tell you something”, okay, you said, “I’m seeing somebody”. And you had dated some ladies over a few years after mom passed away, and I said “that’s great”, and you said, “well it’s getting really serious”,

JN: The amazing thing was, no way was I looking to get married, but it just seemed so natural. By the time we got married, we were deeply in love.

GN: What does that mean to you to have that second love of your life?

JN: You know mom died in 1977. She died a day before my birthday. And you know you have to deal with that loss. You still have to live life, and that’s what I hoped you kids got out of it too.

GN: We did. You taught me that through everything you’ve done. Through your example, you prepared me for life. You made me able to deal with my own ups and downs.

JN: I wasn’t trying to be an example.