Daughter of deceased Genovese boss Vincent Gigante says her father supports marriage to her longtime girlfriend
Rita Gigante (right), daughter of the late Genovese crime boss Vincent "The Chin" Gigante, with fiancé Bobbi Sterchele. They are getting
hitched in Rockland County on May 26.
The FBI might want to arrange for surveillance of a supernatural sort
when the daughter of late Genovese crime family boss Vincent "Chin"
Gigante gets hitched to her longtime girlfriend later this month.
The legendary mafioso, who breathed his last in 2006, will be there in spirit, says his daughter, Rita Gigante. And the dearly departed wiseguy — dubbed “The Oddfather” for parading around Greenwich Village in a ratty-looking bathrobe — will be dressed to impress.
“He’s showing up in a suit and tie,” Gigante told the Daily News.
Gigante, 45, and fiancé Bobbi Sterchele are crazy-in-love partners in spiritual healing. They regularly communicate with their deceased fathers, both of whom have blessed the same-sex union, Gigante says.
“He’s fine with it. He loves Bobbi,” Gigante said of The Oddfather, who was steeped in a clandestine crime culture where omerta was king and gay marriage was one big fuhgeddaboudit!
As one would expect, The Oddfather and Sterchele will be at the big table during the reception, to be held at a Rockland County restaurant on May 26.
“We’re putting out chairs at a table for both of them,” Sterchele, 47, said.
Gigante never had a conversation with her father about her sexuality,
but says he understood she was gay. And, not to mention, his own love
life was unconventional: The Oddfather’s wife, Olympia, bore him five
children — Rita is the youngest — and maintained a second household on
the upper East Side with his mistress — who, oddly enough, was also
named Olympia — and three children.
Last year, Gigante released a memoir, “The Godfather’s Daughter,” that recounted how she was something of a black sheep in a family headed by one of the country’s most powerful mobsters.
But don’t dare call her the mob-princess bride. “I’m not a princess! I work for a living; my father’s dead, and we’re not in the mob anymore,” she snapped.
Gigante and Sterchele both attended Northern Valley Regional High
School in Old Tappan, N.J. While in school, Sterchele said, she had
heard Gigante’s father was “head of the ‘Commission’; her own father was
“in construction.”
“Not the kind of construction my father was in!” Gigante quipped.
But their paths didn’t really cross until they met in 2007 at a “crossing over” session where spiritualists discuss their contact with the spirit world. The couple made a soul connection, and were soon on their way. Last year, on their fifth anniversary, Gigante got down on bended knee and popped the question.
“When I was growing up I didn’t want to get married,” Gigante said at
their cozy ranch home in Tappan, N.Y., which they share with their
three-legged dog, Angel.
“After I met Bobbi … everything feels right and you don’t need the (marriage certificate) but it started to feel right-er — I know that’s not a word — to get married, and I said, ‘Let’s do it!’”
“If my mom wasn’t here today, I’d say ‘Let’s elope,’ but I wanted my mom to enjoy this,” Gigante added. “I’m the last of her children to get married.”
There will be 100 guests, Gigante’s 83-year-old mother among them. The honeymoon will be in Sicily and Naples, where the newlyweds will explore their family roots.
“My family is ecstatic because they see how happy I am,” Sterchele said.
The legendary mafioso, who breathed his last in 2006, will be there in spirit, says his daughter, Rita Gigante. And the dearly departed wiseguy — dubbed “The Oddfather” for parading around Greenwich Village in a ratty-looking bathrobe — will be dressed to impress.
“He’s showing up in a suit and tie,” Gigante told the Daily News.
Gigante, 45, and fiancé Bobbi Sterchele are crazy-in-love partners in spiritual healing. They regularly communicate with their deceased fathers, both of whom have blessed the same-sex union, Gigante says.
Vincent "The Chin" Gigante
(right) is escorted by his son Vincent Esposito as they leave Gigante's
New York residence in June 1997. Gigante faced trial in a federal court
on multiple murder and racketeering charges.
“He’s fine with it. He loves Bobbi,” Gigante said of The Oddfather, who was steeped in a clandestine crime culture where omerta was king and gay marriage was one big fuhgeddaboudit!
As one would expect, The Oddfather and Sterchele will be at the big table during the reception, to be held at a Rockland County restaurant on May 26.
“We’re putting out chairs at a table for both of them,” Sterchele, 47, said.
Rita Gigante (left), daughter of 'The Oddfather,' will marry her partner since 2007, Bobbi Sterchele.
Last year, Gigante released a memoir, “The Godfather’s Daughter,” that recounted how she was something of a black sheep in a family headed by one of the country’s most powerful mobsters.
But don’t dare call her the mob-princess bride. “I’m not a princess! I work for a living; my father’s dead, and we’re not in the mob anymore,” she snapped.
Vincent "The Chin" Gigante,
dubbed 'The Oddfather' for always wearing a bathrobe, is take into
custody and under arrest in 1995.
“Not the kind of construction my father was in!” Gigante quipped.
But their paths didn’t really cross until they met in 2007 at a “crossing over” session where spiritualists discuss their contact with the spirit world. The couple made a soul connection, and were soon on their way. Last year, on their fifth anniversary, Gigante got down on bended knee and popped the question.
Rita Gigante (left) says her
deceased father will be attending her wedding to Bobbi Sterchele (right)
— dressed to the nines in a suit and tie.
“After I met Bobbi … everything feels right and you don’t need the (marriage certificate) but it started to feel right-er — I know that’s not a word — to get married, and I said, ‘Let’s do it!’”
“If my mom wasn’t here today, I’d say ‘Let’s elope,’ but I wanted my mom to enjoy this,” Gigante added. “I’m the last of her children to get married.”
There will be 100 guests, Gigante’s 83-year-old mother among them. The honeymoon will be in Sicily and Naples, where the newlyweds will explore their family roots.
“My family is ecstatic because they see how happy I am,” Sterchele said.
http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/mob-boss-daughter-wed-longtime-girlfriend-article-1.1335308#ixzz2SR3yVQVd
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