Mother, strong, loving, creative, spontaneous
Angelina was a social butterfly. A kind and thoughtful person, she felt truly at peace when she brought joy into the lives of others. Throughout her life, she maintained strong relationships with friends and family and never missed an opportunity to show someone how much they meant to her. Her mother, Tina, remarks, “Angelina would see her friends or family and get so excited and always give them hugs and kisses. She also loved picking wildflowers and bringing them to me. She would run up to me yelling, ‘Mom!’ and would pull them out and give them to me and then give me hugs and kisses as well.”
Growing up, Angelina loved hanging out and playing basketball with her three brothers, Leo, Nick, and Sal. She also enjoyed spending time with her best friends Kimmie, Jennifer, and Danielle, all of whom she remained close to throughout adulthood. They planned special days to get together to make food and catch up. Angelina was sentimental and took photos with friends, printed them and made memory boards that she decorated with glitter, glue, and rhinestones. Angelina loved art in all forms and was very talented at painting, drawing, and chalkboard art, which were her favorite mediums. She also profoundly enjoyed music and taking walks in nature.
Angelina’s biggest accomplishment was being a mother to her son, Mason. It was what she loved the most in life. She planned adventures and activities for the two of them to do together. Whether they were doing art, blowing bubbles, reading books, or playing games, she took her role as a mother seriously. Angelina especially loved teaching Mason how to be a person. She would take him to the playground, to museums, and to the zoo. She took him for walks to her favorite place, the tower in the Mequon Nature Preserve. She taught him how to ride a bike, how to play basketball, and even how to bake. Angelina worked in custom apparel and was an expert at eyebrow threading. Her biggest dream for her future was to buy a home for her and her son and to open her own coffee shop.
Angelina’s disease affected her mother, Tina, in the way it affects all parents watching their child suffer. She spent many sleepless nights worrying and driving around looking for Angelina, and always dreading the phone call no parent wants to receive. Her mother says that since Angelina’s passing, she has gotten back into something they used to do together- pageantry. Tina is the current Ms. Wisconsin Galaxy and has traveled to all 72 counties in the state of Wisconsin, speaking as an advocate for substance use disorder (SUD) to decrease the stigma about mental health and substance use.
Tina works with the global nonprofit, Just Listen, which supports people with mental health and SUD. She has received acclaim in many arenas of SUD advocacy and says she will continue working to help families heal from the devastation that comes with addiction. Tina says that she misses everything about her daughter, especially watching her raise her son.
Angelina’s mother, Tina Perry, provided information for this narrative.
April 24, 1993-July 28, 2021-Age 28
Portrait Artist: Carol Meckling
Narrative Writer: Victoria Estes
