Today Caroline Ricci has a birthday. Daughter to Maryanne (Daley) Ricci and Robert Ricci, Caroline was born in La Jolla, CA. Caroline’s maternal grandparents, the late Joan (Riley) Daley (1929-2019) and the late Frederick (Nick) Daley (1927-1991).

Caroline owns and operates an online business called OldNewZz.  She resells vintage and thrifted clothing on Instagram.  Check it out.

Happy Birthday, Caroline…bet ya havin’ a cocktail or two.

Today, John Patrick Daley has himself another birthday. His mom, was the late Joan Louise (Riley) Daley (1929-2019) and dad, the late Frederick “Nick” Daley (1927-1991). John, the middle child, grew up in Pawtucket along with his four sisters, Tammie, Maryanne, Lynne and Elizabeth.

John is married to Debbie Troufield. John and Deb now have two sons, John Frederick called “Nick” and Patrick John. John was also stepfather to the late Joshua Troufield.

Happy Birthday, John! Twenty-one days till Opening Day.

• see blog post March 18, 2021

It is Ben Nelson’s birthday today. On the day he was born, the weather was clear and windy. The temperature dropped all day from a high of around 36 to a low of 11, with some pretty good gusty winds around the 25-30 mph range.

His proud parents are Lynne (Daley) Nelson and Russell Nelson. Ben’s grandmother was the late Joan (Riley) Daley (1929-2019) and his great grandfather was the late Patrick J. Riley (1900-1985).

I didn’t get to post last June about the Ben’s great senior year on the Middletown High School baseball team. Ben was a major contributor as his team won the school’s first state championship. Ben led the team in runs scored, stolen bases and averaged over .300 + for the season.

Here is a photo that was published last June in the Newport Daily News.

Happy Birthday, Ben, and belated congratulations on Middletown’s 1st State Championship.

It is Elizabeth Daley Mahony‘s birthday today. Beth was born in Providence on this date to the late Joan Louise (Riley) Daley (1929-2019) and the late Frederick A. Daley (1927-1991). Beth’s maternal late grandparents were Patrick Joseph Riley (1900-1985), Margaret Cecelia McSally(1900-1938) and Margaret Frances Bartley (1911-1878), while her late paternal grandparents were John Thomas Daley (1892- ?) and Delia Calahan (1893- ?). Delia (Bridget) was born in Ireland.

After attending schools in Pawtucket – St Teresa’s and Saint Raphael Academy – Beth was off to the University of Rhode Island, where she not only got herself a degree, but charmed a guy named Tom Mahony. A year or two after URI, the couple married and settled in California where she and Tom have built a new life and a wonderful family.

And here is a slightly out of focus photo from Beth and Tom’s wedding reception:

Happy Birthday, Beth!

• see post 1/17/2021; 1/17/2020

Luke Mahony’s 13th birthday is today and what a great photo to capture his special day. According to his mom and dad, Elizabeth Daley Mahony and Thomas Mahony, fishing is how Luke would prefer to spend every day. If you revisit last year’s October 6th posting, you will see Luke engaged in his favorite activity.

Luke, along with his proud parents and siblings, Liam and Maeve, live out in North-Central California where the weather encourages outdoor activities…especially fishing.

Just as a reminder, Luke’s maternal grandmother was the late Joan (Riley) Daley (1919-2019) and his great grandfather was the late Patrick J. Riley (1900-1985).

Happy Birthday, Luke and as this Birthday Boy always says: “Every day is for fishing”.

Robert A. Ricci, husband of Maryanne Daley and son-in-law of the late Joan (Riley) Daley (1929-2019) and the late Frederick ‘Nick” Daley (1927-1991) was born on this day.

Bob grew up on the Pawtucket/North Providence line and developed into a very good athlete, becoming one of Rhode Island’s better goalies. In fact, Bob went on to play goal at Elmira College and graduated with a degree in Business Administration.

My father, Patrick J. Riley (1900-1985) always enjoyed Bob. Whether it was the conversations they had or Bob’s mannerisms. Bob seemed to always put a smile on my father’s face. I remember Bob always ended his conversations with my father by saying, “See ya later, gramps,” and this took place even before Maryanne and Bob were engaged. Just a nice reflection on Bob’s personality.

Bob and Maryanne were married in Pawtucket back in the late 1980’s and have two adult children, Robert Andrew and Caroline.

Here is Bob as of a few weeks ago:

Bob still laces up the skates and hopes for call-up to the National Hockey League. Here he is in goal.

Happy Birthday, Bob. Keep skating and living the good life out west.

Frederick Albert Daley, “Nick,” was born on May 4, 1927 in Central Falls to the late Delia Bridget Calahan Daley (b. 1882 in Ireland – 1964) and the late John Thomas Daley (1882 – 1968).

According to The Pawtucket Evening Times (2 cents per copy), the temperature was beginning to warm, but the following days were to bring scattered showers to the area. The national news story of the day was that major flooding had occurred from Minnesota all the way down to New Orleans. The Blackstone Valley Red Cross was putting together a major fundraising drive to help with the recovery efforts. Another big story was the divorce proceedings Charlie Chaplin was embroiled in with his soon to be ex-wife. Seems Mrs. Chaplin wanted to have to court release the names of the five actresses Good Time Charlie was “associating with.” The famous comedian was ordered to temporarily pay alimony at $1,500 per month. In sports news of the day, although it was early in the baseball season, the Red Sox were already in last place. Down at the Leroy Theatre, there was a Hoot Gibson movie playing entitled: “The Denver Dude.”

By 1930 Nick’s family had moved into Pawtucket to Grand Avenue, just a few short blocks from the home of his future spouse, Joan Riley. An interesting tidbit from that 1930 census shows that his mother, born in the Ireland, also spoke Gaelic (Irish).

How does Nick Daley figure into the Riley Family Tree? Well, on November 9, 1953, Nick married Joan Louise Riley at St. Leo The Great Catholic Church on Central Avenue in the City of Pawtucket. A nice aside to this marriage is that Joan’s dad, Patrick J. Riley (1900-1985) was a very good friend of Nick’s dad way before Joan and Nick even met. The guys used to frequent the Monitor Club on Meadow Street to quench a terrible thirst and play some cards. Nick’s dad was known as the “Fox” because he was a bit of a wiz with the cards. What he’d do was have a half a glass of what looked like whiskey sitting beside him on the card table. In reality, it was tea. He would never drink from it, but it gave the impression that he was indulging, while observing the clouded mistakes of the other players. Ah, the wonders of Pawtucket!

Nick’s 1945 draft card states he was six feet tall and about 145 lbs, not big by today’s standards, but he was athletic enough in his day to play some varsity basketball for Bryant College. He loved local politics. Later on, in the late 1970’s, Nick was elected to the Pawtucket City Council.

Nick and Joan had six children: Fred (1957-1957), Tammie, Maryanne, John, Lynne and Elizabeth. Today, this Daley-Riley connection has grown to include 11 grandchildren and 1 new great grandchild.

Unfortunately, Nick passed away in November of 1991, when was he was 64 years old.

It’s a birthday for another of the West Coast Riley family tree contingent. Maeve Francis Mahony, who, not wishing to interfere with her parents’ weekend, entered this world on a Tuesday, such a thoughtful child.

Maeve’s parents, Elizabeth (Daley) Mahony and Thomas Mahony welcomed their second child that sunny 60 degree day. Older brother Liam, who had been around for a few years, probably was a bit anxious over Maeve’s arrival and what it would do to his status. Word is he has managed just fine, even with later addition, Luke.

Here are the Mahony siblings celebrating some type of ethnic observance:

Just as a reminder, Maeve’s maternal grandparents are the late Joan (Riley) Daley (1919-2019) and Frederick “Nick” Daley (1927-1991) and her great grandfather was the late Patrick J. Riley (1900-1985).

Now, some of this blog’s more observant readers may have said, “Well, he made another mistake. He used the masculine form to spell Maeve’s middle name.” No, no, no, it is not a mistake at all! You see, Maeve has a deep love of animals and a strong spiritual connection to their patron, Saint Francis. When it was time for Maeve’s confirmation, it was Saint Francis’s name she chose. A beautiful reflection of Maeve’s spirituality and personal credo.

According to her mom, Maeve loves skiing, bike riding, and playing her tenor saxophone. But her true love is cross country running and she hopes to join her high school team this fall. 

 Maeve has fallen in love with the new family dog Flint, who accompanies her on her training runs in the neighborhood. They make a great team! Maeve attends the local Performing & Fine Arts Academy and enjoys the dance and art theory classes that are sprinkled  throughout the school day. Maeve is an absolute joy to be around and makes her family proud. 

The Cuban Missile Crisis was just beginning. Boston Celtics basketball player Gene Conley became a two sport professional athlete by signing a contract with the Red Sox for an estimated $23,000. All the movie goers were talking about a film titled Days of Wine and Roses starring Jack Lemon and Lee Remick. Vietnam was still a distant place on a map and not many people were paying attention.

But the weather was almost mild that day in Providence when John Patrick Daley was born. The temperature hit 48 degrees and the sun was darting in and out of the clouds. His mom, the late Joan Louise (Riley) Daley (1929-2019) and dad, the late Frederick “Nick” Daley (1927-1991) were happy to tell their two girls, Tammie and Maryanne, that a baby brother was coming home in a few days. By the time the Daley family finished growing, two more girls, Lynne and Beth, had come along. John was frequently out-voted by a four to one count – like that mattered to him.

Time has marched on, John an occupational rehabilitation specialists, is married to Debbie Troufield. John and Deb now have two sons, John Frederick called “Nick” and Patrick John. John was also stepfather to the late Joshua Troufield.

Here is photo of John escorting his mother Joan:

Happy Birthday, John…they are beginning to pile up.

*see blog post March 18, 2020

Ben Nelson has a birthday today. Early word was that Middletown High School was really pumped waiting for Ben’s arrival this morning. I mean, come on…look at this guy – a ballplayer, handsome, Nikes match the shirt and he’s got hair, real good hair. In fact, the hair is so good, we may have to check to see why he got such great hair DNA. Yup, it must be nice to have people gaze upon you and admire your head of hair; as opposed to what I normally hear about the sun’s harsh glare reflecting off the top of my noggin.

Born on this day in Providence, to Lynne (Daley) Nelson and Russell Nelson. Ben’s grandmother was the late Joan (Riley) Daley (1929-2019) and his great grandfather was the late Patrick J. Riley (1900-1985).

Ben is hoping he and other high schoolers get to have a baseball season this year. Last year’s season never got off the ground because of Covid, hopefully “play ball” is heard across Rhode Island, so Ben and others can take the field.

*see blog post of March 3, 2020