Mary Glorioso’s Death a Shock to Brady Street Community

A car accident Saturday claimed the life of Mary Glorioso, 83, the matriarch of the family, a long-time fixture of the Brady Street neighborhood.

Glorioso died Monday evening as the result of severe trauma she suffered in an automobile accident.

Glorioso and her husband Joe opened Glorioso Brothers, 1020 E. Brady Street in 1948. The firm, which remains in business, is an importer and retailer of Italian foods and goods, and was a catalyst in the Brady Street rejuvenation. The family resides a block from the store.

It was while walking between the two that Mary Glorioso was struck by a vehicle at the intersection of E. Brady Street and N. Astor Street. A diminutive woman who walked with the aid of a cane, Mary Glorioso always crossed at that intersection, between Regano’s Roman Coin tavern and the Brady Street Pharmacy, often with the aid of neighbors or store employees.

“We are all shocked,” an employee of the store said Tuesday. Joe Glorioso was in seclusion. His brothers Ted Glorioso, who operates Glorioso’s Gold Imports from a shop above the store, and Eddie Glorioso, who works at the store’s deli counter were also unavailable for comment.

Joe and Mary Glorioso were familiar names to readers of the Italian Times. Virtually every issue of the monthly newspaper of the Italian Community Center mentioned an example of the Gloriosos’ frequent gifts to the building fund there in memory of departed friends. Now, Mary Glorioso will be the one memorialized.

Mrs. Glorioso also frequently oversaw operations at the store, and was usually no more than a step or two away from her husband. The two were an extremely devoted couple.

A call to Bruce Scott, public information officer for the 5th District of the Milwaukee Police Department did not yield any information about the accident. “This is the first I’ve heard of it,” he said. Members of the Brady Street Business Improvement District have put traffic concerns on the agenda for their Wednesday meeting. Just a week or so another pedestrian suffered injuries after being struck by a car on Brady Street and dragged about a half a block.

Information on funeral arrangements for Mary Glorioso will be in Wednesday’s newspaper.

Trolley Returns

Milwaukee Downtown BID #21, along with a host of participating businesses will bring back the downtown trolleys starting May 26th. The Milwaukee Trolley Loop travels one-way in a clockwise direction with departures every minutes. The circuit takes about 36 minutes to complete. It runs from 5th and Wisconsin Avenue at the south and west to Brady Street and Farwell Avenue at the northeast as it zigs and zags its way through town. The major shopping streets of downtown and the Historic Third Ward are included in the route. It makes about 20 stops along the way. The trolley will run Wednesday-Thursday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to midnight and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. The fare is $1.00. Seniors and the disabled pay 50 cents with a valid ID. The trolley will run through September 5th. … In other Downtown BID #21 news, Jim Klisch, the former Milwaukee police officer and brewery owner has suited up again. Klisch is now a Public Service Ambassador for the downtown association. He’s the tall one.

“Wisconsin May Decide Election” – Dem Party

Linda Honold, the chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin has sent out a form letter requesting contributions to the party from the grass roots. “AP reports key states for Bush down to 5 – Wisconsin may decide Presidential Election.&”

“In fact,” the chair goes on, “national political pundits are predicting that this Presidential election will be so close in Wisconsin that we could be the next Florida.”

According to Honold, “Al Gore won Wisconsin by less than one-half of one percent of the overall vote. It’s no coincidence that Gore won Wisconsin by roughly the same number of votes as we had card carrying members of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin. … We must re-defeat Bush in Wisconsin. But we can’t do it without you.”

According to Honold, “Democrats have never been able to compete dollar for dollar with conservative right-wing special interest money. Thus, our party members play integral roles in our campaign operation. That’s why we rely so heavily on you to contribute to our grassroots efforts.” She suggests a contribution of “$25, $60, $120 or whatever you can afford.”

horne@milwaukeeworld.com