Resha (Kerxhalli) Chekani

Ignoring her family's protests, Resha (Kerxhalli) Chekani, flew the coop on 15 May, after gracing the world with her presence for only 91 years. She could be in the dictionary under Life Well Lived. Born in Pograde, Albania, she came to the U.S. as a toddler with her parents, Thanas and Olga (Laska) Kerxhalli, and a baby brother, Mentor. In the U.S. she acquired three more brothers, Duke, Steve, and George. Three other beloved siblings did not survive into adulthood. She and her mother were best friends, a concept she later applied to her own daughters. She loved her brothers, stood up for them, and bossed them around, and they took it like men. Not long after WWII, she met George Chekani, who liked to tell the story about the way he warmed her heart with a cup of hot cocoa. Their marriage produced four daughters, "all different," she would say. It produced as well a close-knit family that shared interesting times and far more than its fair share of laughter. In 1955 she and George bought a little Mom and Pop store, with living quarters behind it, on Hamilton Street. The G&R Hilltop evolved into a Worcester-type "spa," serving hamburgers ("the best in Worcester," Jordan Levy once proclaimed themand he wasn't the only one), hot dogs, sandwiches, and lots of talking. City workers of all ranks and departments would gather for coffee or lunch and argue politics or simply talk, knowing Resha was a good listener and a wise adviser. Being the last stop on the No. 18 bus route before the return trip, G&R Hilltop brought in bus drivers as well, who became friends, babysitters and, to her daughters' annoyance, spies. If any of Resha's kids were anywhere near one of the numerous (at the time) bus routes, news would promptly reach Mum's ears. The neighbors helped in this regard, too, knowing that she looked out for their children in the same way. She faced up to armed robbers twice, once saying, "If you want the money, you have to take it, because I'm not giving it to you." For many years, Resha was a fixture in the balcony at Tuesday night City Council meetings"to keep an eye on them," she said. When retirement ended her twelve-hour workdays, she went on working for others. She was a president of the Gruja Shqiptare, a church-affiliated organization her mother had founded. When Albania began its difficult journey out of communism, she and her husband George put together boxes of food, clothing, and other crucial supplies, as part of NEARO's relief effort. After his death, she redirected her caregiving skills to volunteering at Grafton Street School's Literacy Center as an Albanian translator. She took the bus to get there. To her it was no big deal, but in 2000 Worcester Magazine featured her in an article called "Hometown Heroes." She insisted the accompanying photograph include the teachers with whom she worked. Age finally slowed her down by hampering her mobility. Though homebound, she kept her feisty spiritsome call it stubbornnessand sense of humor, and continued to be a shining example to all who met her, of love, warmth, compassion, and kindness. This included the hundreds of abandoned cats she fed over the years. She was a take-no-prisoners Scrabble player, a devotee of crosswords (she made up her own words sometimes), scratch tickets, and word search puzzles. Once a month she and her daughters had a Pizza and Pokeno Sunday, when she did her best to win all their pennies. With brothers and sisters-in-law, she made trips to Foxwoods Casino and played the penny slots forever. She leaves bereft daughters Loretta Chekani and her husband Walter Henritze, Cynthia and Robert Drelinger, Vivian and Charles Buduski, and her devoted caregiver Kathy Chekani; grandchildren Matthew Buduski and his partner Kelly Morin, Ashley Buduski and her fiancé Mike Shadd, and David Drelinger; great-granddaughter Scarlett Rae Buduski; brothers Duke and Helen Kerxhalli, Steve Kerxhalli, and Georgecaregiver and protectorand Teuta Kerxhalli, and many nieces and nephews. Great-grandchild Irelynn Nevaeh Buduski, brother Mentor, sister-in-law and Scrabble opponent Vera Kerxhalli and many other loved ones predeceased her. We will miss her, every day of our lives. Calling hours: 4-7PM Monday 20 May, Mercadante Funeral Home and Chapel, 370 Plantation Street, Worcester. Funeral Mass: 10 AM Tuesday 21 May, St. Mary's Assumption Albanian Orthodox Church, Salisbury Street. Burial to follow at Worcester County Memorial Park, Paxton. A Trisigion Service will be held at 6PM. Instead of flowers, some might wish to make a donation in her memory to the Ronald McDonald House or the Worcester Animal Rescue League.