<< Go Back

Green City Savior (Green City Novels)

By Christen Civiletto

Order Now!

CHAPTER ONE

December 31, 2003

Dear citizens of Niagara Falls,

You may have known me as Joseph Salvatore Malvisti, business owner, church deacon, family man. A pillar of the city’s Italian-American community. I’m “good people,” as the locals like to say.

Don’t listen to them.

One crisp fall evening in 1946 I made a decision that forever changed the great city of Niagara Falls. It was not a change for the better, as most of you know by now. I would do things differently if I had the chance.
At least, I have to believe I would.

My choice led to devastation and heartache for many. It marred the pristine beauty of the Niagara Frontier and shook my fellow citizens’ faith in government.

But that pales in comparison to what it did to my family.

It’s probably too late for my redemption, but perhaps not for that of my grandchildren or our legacy. And it’s certainly not too late for this city. Niagara Falls is ripe for a rebirth—a return to its former glory and natural beauty. An existence unmarred by toxic defilement or political corruption.

Or pride.

You, my friends, have a promising future.

But you need my help.

Enclosed in the accompanying envelope is a memoir, of sorts, that I dictated to a trusted friend. (Weeks of staring at nothing but sterile white sheets and barren hospital walls give a sick man plenty of time to think … and write.) It’s partly my immigration story. An account of how a young Italian man, a boy, really, who arrived in America with nothing but a few childish trinkets in his pocket, built a business that employed and shaped an American city. I reveal some of my deepest hopes, my greatest successes, and my crushing failures.

But it’s also the story of Niagara Falls.

Like me, this once-magnificent city soared through the early part of the twentieth century on the wings of industry, only to crash and burn by its end, leaving brokenness in its wake. Corruption has worked its way into the very fiber of this place. It lives as openly as the abject poverty you see on a drive through downtown. The story of my life is bound up in the good and the bad, the right and the wrong, of my adopted hometown.

You are entitled to the truth about what happened to this city and why. I hope that you examine the justifications I offer. Talk about the rationalizations for the choices I made. My desire is that you make better decisions for the future after learning of my mistakes. George Santayana had it right when he said, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” The past millennium has been marked by astonishing advancements in technology, rivaled only by man’s equally stupendous foolishness. Mine included.

Sharing the truth is a start. But this memoir contains something equally important. I aim to inspire you with an innovative idea for the future of Niagara Falls. I’ve laid the groundwork. I’ve done what I could. Now it’s your turn. Prepare to be renewed, inside and out, my friends. Who says man can’t think his way out of despair?

I finished recording this story a few hours ago, knowing the end is near for me. My heart seeks to dwell on eternal things now; I’m done with the hurts and mistakes of this world. But I’ve asked my friend to make sure the memoir isn’t released until both of my adult sons, Joseph Jr. and Salvatore, are dead. You may wonder why I’m waiting until my sons are gone from this earth to make public the truth. I’m not really sure. Guilt certainly plays a part. I failed to provide the guidance required of a father. Since their mistakes are a direct result of mine, I can’t live with the thought of helping to send them to prison.

But I also failed to provide the leadership and accountability demanded of a man esteemed in our community.

At least one of those failures is about to change.

Order Now!

<< Go Back