From Tragedy to Triumph: The Heart Behind GOD is Watching the Apples

The Full Article

By Janalynne Salerno Gius
Originally published in Southington Magazine, Summer 2025 Edition (Pages 24-25)

On July 19, my father, John Salerno, along with his business partner and friend, Betsy Tooker, and local author, Chuck Miceli, will host a book launch and signing event at Tops Marketplace, for the release of their co-authored book, “GOD is Watching the Apples.” While I’m certain that the mood in the store that day will be one of celebration, it will also be a somewhat bittersweet experience for the authors, myself, my siblings, and others whose lives are chronicled in the book.

Chuck Miceli’s novels allow us to detach ourselves emotionally from the misadventures the characters might encounter but from start to finish, this story, the events and everyone in it are real, and so are their experiences, both bitter and sweet. That might prompt you to wonder why my father and Betsy would expose themselves by writing it. Well, I certainly know that for my father, this was a story he had to tell.

When my father and Betsy first approached Chuck about writing the book, he declined in light of his own writing and publishing responsibilities. Later, he admitted he was a bit skeptical about how much of a story there could actually be about a local grocery store. Then came the Covid pandemic and fate intervened. Chuck saw many of his activities put on hold, which gave him a much-needed break and allowed him to revisit my father and Betsy’s idea for a book.

They got to work and agreed to meet every week for what ended up being just over a year. I recall in the beginning, my father would frequently spend much of the sessions in tears as he relived the events of the past. He would call me after and ask if I remembered certain stories and we’d both end up crying on the phone.

I was glad that he was able to process the emotions that he had buried, especially as they related to my mother, Nancylee. This included their joys, struggles, divorce, reconnection, and ultimately her death in 2012, caused by a drunk driver just two days before Christmas; a tragedy that we still mourn.

After my mother’s passing, my father was reluctant to see a grief counselor. I went with him to the first appointment thinking it might do me some good as well. He only made it to a few sessions and I came to terms that we all process grief differently and at our own pace. I felt that writing this book became his way to release some of that grief, not only from the loss of my mother, but from the store burning down in 2019 and going all the way back to the loss of his original business partner, Jack Kastner.

I’m now happy they wrote the book. I wasn’t hoping for a bestseller; I simply wanted my father back. The father that loved life when we were children, the one who took us on endless bike rides, swam in the pool, and had so much excitement for our next vacation to Disney, as if it were our first. For so long after my mother died, he was unable to feel joy with his children and grandchildren because he felt her death had robbed her of that joy and happiness. His guilt and remorse made the grieving process harder for us all, because we were not only coming to terms with the loss of our mother, but we were also mourning the loss of our father’s spirit. This book was just the therapy that he needed.

As the months passed, my father cried less with each session. He and Betsy were able to see more clearly the path of their lives, both personal and with respect to the business, along with the lives of so many others, like my father’s original business partner, Jack Kastner, whose story is intertwined with the history of Tops Marketplace. Betsy was more reserved in the beginning and let my father do most of the talking, but she eventually opened up to include the many customers, employees, relatives and friends who have affected their lives over the years.

Early on, they decided to dedicate the book to my father’s grandchildren, who were just as much a part of Betsy’s life as well. They would sometimes question why they were writing the book and if their story was one that others might find interesting or relatable. Along the way, Chuck suggested that they simply allow the story to unfold. As it did, Chuck became more certain that this was a story worth telling. After all, it was one of loss, perseverance, faith and community; things we can all relate to at one point or another in our own lives.

This was not an easy book for me to read, because I lived the story. In fact, a few of my siblings have yet to finish the book. I can also be rather emotional, and that was certainly the case when I started to read early drafts and especially when it came time to look through old family photo albums to identify pictures that would help tell their story. I had the advantage of being the oldest of five siblings and remembered, albeit somewhat vaguely, a few of my father’s older relatives and associates, but his stories somehow brought them back to life, and I recalled other details, which led us both to cry on occasion. That’s what we do in the Salerno family, we cry a lot. Not just over the sad events, but especially over happy memories.

Betsy expressed having the same difficulty reading those initial drafts with her memories on paper for all to read. From the very beginning of my father buying the business from the Topshe family in 1979, Betsy has become a part of our family and a big presence in our lives and the lives of our children. It was because of her that we were able to take family vacations when we were young because she “held down the fort” for my father to get away.

I hope that one day soon, my siblings will be able to finish reading the book, because “GOD is Watching the Apples” is not simply about overcoming grief. Much more importantly, this book is about the triumph of faith over doubt, about the resilience of hope in the face of despair, and most important, about the inexhaustible power of love to go beyond loss, to a place of peace, and eventually to a return to joy.