07/11/2026
My grandma was a touchstone in our family. She was admired by all for her elegance, her wit, her beauty, her many talents, and the countless lives she touched.
All of my childhood memories came from her. My feet never touched the ground, my face was always covered in her lipstick, and custom dresses from Milan would be flown in, where my Grandma dressed me as her Italian doll. It was impossible to keep us apart.
As a little girl, I asked her who her grandma was, and she shared that she didn’t have one. Then I asked who her mom was, and she explained that she and her sister were raised by nuns in an orphanage in Argentina. I couldn’t understand how the person who gave me so much love had never experienced it herself. From that day on, I spent my life giving her the maternal love she never received.
She was my closest friend, and she was the smartest woman I have known. Every decision I have made with M Media, I asked for her advice first. She was unbelievably brilliant and multitalented. In a generation where most men kept their wives at home, my grandpa relied on her as an equal business partner. It was her brain and his creativity that built their success and paved the way for our family.
It has been a blessing to cherish every moment with her and care for her, just as she had always done for me. As heartbroken as I am, I am also thankful to pass the baton back to its rightful owner. My grandma never met her own mom, and every effort and act of love I have given was done with the intention of honoring the woman who spent the last 85 years witnessing her baby’s life from the other side. All of the love I have in me was doubled from heaven, using my heart as a vessel, into my grandma. And yesterday morning, the woman who waited 85 years to love her own baby finally had that opportunity to welcome her into the afterlife.
The love I have will live in me forever, and one day, when I am a grandma myself, I hope she works through my granddaughter to transfer her love back to me again. Thank you to all of my friends and clients who know how important she was to me and have shown up and been so loving to my family ❤️
Elena Rosa Oddo 🌹 06/15/41 - 07/10/26
