Meet Ed Zilli, American Badass
Ed Zilli and his beloved granddaughter, Miss Beka Su,e showing off their matching tattoos
Can you be inspired by someone you’ve only heard about through someone else? I’m not talking somebody famous… just a regular person. Somebody you’ve never met… you’ve never even spoken to… you’ve only heard stories about this individual from someone else.
Well, I’m going not going to say emphatically, “yes,” I would like to present to you three reasons why Ed Zilli inspires me and he should inspire you, too.
Before we get to that, though, let me tell you the connection here. Ed Zilli is the grandfather of our own Miss Beka Sue. Through the past couple of years Miss Beka Sue has been involved in the ABV Network, she and I have become pretty good friends. It’s rare when a conversation with her doesn’t at least touch on her grandpa, and often she tells these stories that just fascinate me about this 96-year-old man, both about his personal history through all of those years, as well as life today.
Through those conversations with Miss Beka Sue, here’s a look at the three reasons why I get inspired hearing about Ed Zilli:
He’s a War Hero– Make no mistake about this… Ed Zilli is an American badass. You know how you hear stories about D-Day and General Patton’s army “storming the beaches of Normandy to push the Nazis out of Western Europe?” Ummm, yeah, Ed Zilli was one of those guys. He was also in the Battle of the Bulge so there is no doubt this man has lived through the horrors of war, but lived through it to return home to raise a family. Badass Meter/War Hero Category (0 – 100): 100
His Life Today is an Inspiration– For those of us on the wrong side of 50, you start to think about the future and what it may bring for you. With those persistent aches and pains, what does life look like in 10-years? Well, at 96-years of age, I am sure Ed Zilli has his share of aches and pains, but it isn’t stopping him from living a fulfilling life. He lives by himself in an apartment. He regularly attends family outings. He routinely walks everywhere he needs to go, routinely climbing flights of steps at the home of his daughter and son-in-law when he arrives. Badass Meter/Inspiration of Life Today (0 – 100): 100
The Love for his Granddaughter– I mean think about this… Ed Zilli was 65-years-old when his granddaughter was born. Everybody adores Miss Beka Sue, but she can be a handful… from the hard partying, to the crazy ideas about themed Christmas card photos to her “in your face” approach to conflict settlement… but hey, it’s her charm (she really is the sweetest person you will ever meet and I’m not even kidding… you just really have to know her). Anyway, it might be easy to surmise someone born in the 1920s might have a difficult time connecting with someone born in 1988. That’s not the case at all, with Ed and his granddaughter though. Miss Beka Sue is the apple of that man’s eye. He always takes her side in family disputes and he can be talked into things like getting involved in those themed family Christmas photos if Miss Beka Sue asks him. The dude may be an American badass, but our fiery redhead has his heart. Badass Meter/The Love for his Grandaughter (0 – 100): 100
It’s true, with a perfect score of 300, Ed Zilli went as high as you can go on the badass meter. He’s one of those, “they don’t make ‘em like this anymore” types of people. It brings me to the point of all of this today… Mr. Zilli has been ill and in the hospital, this past week. He’s been up-and-down with moments where he’s himself and others where he’s struggled. I don’t know that I’m a religious person, but I do believe in the power of positive thinking and channeling those vibes. It’s been difficult for the family, and I know this has be really tough on Miss Beka Sue… so, if you could, send some positive thoughts Ed Zilli’s up in Minot… because the world is a better place with people like him in it.
One final request, if you could take a quick moment to read about Mr. Zilli’s military career which was celebrated last June in Minot at the 75thanniversary of D-Day, I think you will have even a better perspective of how awesome this man is: http://bit.ly/37thGes.