When Jessica walked into a room everyone took notice. Maybe it was her beauty or the warmth of her personality that attracted so many people. Her family and friends always looked forward to spending time with her, because you knew you were going to have fun. Her presence brightened the lives around her. She was loved more than she could ever possibly imagine.
Even those who only met her once told us that they remembered her because she was genuinely a nice sweet person. She was a mature 19 year old. She had been working a full time job since she was 14 years old and attending school full time as well. At the age of 17, she became the manager of a beauty supply store at our local mall. She also attended a college for Fashion Design and Marketing. She set her goals high to make a name for herself in the Fashion World. She had dreams of going to Paris to study fashion. She was focused on her future, but never lost sight of having fun with her family and friends, Holidays, birthdays and family events were important to Jessica.
She was the heart of our family. Her sisters, cousins, Aunts and Uncles, Grandparents, friends and especially her mom and dad miss her.
In August of 2007, she started dating Thomas Paolino and in 8 short months he murdered our beautiful daughter. With Jessica’s death came incredible sadness and a quiet so deafening that it is noticeable in every aspect of our lives.
It is because of the love of our daughter Jessica that gave us the strength to fight for educational changes and other necessary laws to protect other women from Jessica’s fate.
With the help of Assemblyman Michael Cusick, Ideal 31 President and Parent Liaison for the UFT Joan Mckeever – Thomas, Ideal 31’s Co- President Eleanor Conforti, and Ideal 31’s Susan Broderick that The Jessica Tush Act was created and has been gaining increasing support. This bill is an educational bill to teach children Respect, Self Esteem, How to handle Rejection, Dating Violence, Bullying and Cyber Bullying.
Also, Assemblywoman Janele Hyer- Spencer, and Assemblyman Matthew Titone, Jeanine McGuire (and the Di Medici Family) along with the above mentioned helped to create The Danielle Di Medici and Jessica Tush Law which will create a Registry for Domestic Abuse Offenders.
We, the heartbroken parents and families want to teach the lessons that we are too late to learn, by helping you protect you and your child from the fate that we now suffer. Please talk to your child, both MALE and FEMALE, about Dating Abuse and Domestic Violence. As parents, we are the first educators of our children and we teach by example.
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