First Bruno...Now This

By Ron Welliver

About the Book
First Bruno...Now This tells the story of two brothers from Hyde Park, Massachusetts, brought up in the same household in the 1970s. For any outsider, their lives appeared perfectly normal. But what is normal? Ron Welliver’s family had a strict, hardworking, church-going mother, and a quiet ghost of an introverted father who folded himself inward in his haze of alcoholism. The author takes the reader into the dark world of his brother’s ways of the street and the code of honor that, to him, made sense. In the end it would cost him his family, and later, his life.
Is upbringing nature or nurture? Read how one brother stays a problematic, small time criminal drug abuser, while the other brother becomes a family man and street cop of thirty-one years.
About the Author
A Boston, Massachusetts, native, Ron Welliver is a retired law enforcement officer of thirty-one years. He is a veteran of two Boston Marathons, and at the age of fifty-seven, his passion for hiking was born. He completed all forty-eight of the New Hampshire four-thousand-foot mountains a few years later. For over twenty years, Welliver volunteered as a middle school and high school football coach. He and his wife, Susan, raised their family in the southern New Hampshire area where he currently owns a small lawn care business.

• Language: English
• Publisher: RoseDog Books
• Release date: Aug 9, 2023
• ISBN: 9798890277435

Book preview

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The contents of this work, including, but not limited to, the accuracy of events, people, and places depicted; opinions expressed; permission to use previously published materials included; and any advice given or actions advocated are solely the responsibility of the author, who assumes all liability for said work and indemnifies the publisher against any claims stemming from publication of the work.

All Rights Reserved

Copyright © 2023 by Ron Welliver

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted, downloaded, distributed, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, including photocopying and recording, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented without permission in writing from the publisher.

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The foundation of this story is based on family dysfunction and the paths chosen by two brothers.

FOREWORD(Note: DUCKIE is the authors nickname)

Ron has truly captured the essence of his family growing up in Hyde Park, MA. I found it hilarious, gritty, sad, and more importantly, the struggle Ron and his mom endured. Written as only Ron Welliver could write it. I understand ‘Duckie’ a whole lot more than I did before. Pete Bouchard (retired Police Sergeant, Nashua, NH)

"I read manuscript cover to cover, and I could not put this book down. I think this story would make a good movie, First Bruno . . . Now This, the A Wells chronicles." Frank Marino (Patent agent originally from Hyde Park, MA)

Thank you, Ron Welliver, for humanizing cops. So many people will connect with this life experience. One never knows what another is going through, so be kind is my take on this book. Chief Paul Dean (University of New Hampshire Police Department)

The content and story have great promise. I laughed out loud a few times with a narrative completely in the voice of Ron Welliver. The ones who recognize dysfunction, like Ron does, are the people who impact others the most. ‘Duckie’ is the father he didn’t have. A great story. Keely Noyes (family mediator in the southern New Hampshire area)

WARNING!

Before going any further, you must know that if you are offended by vulgar language, sarcasm, or appearance of apathy by me, walk away now. Most of the language are quotes from my brother, his old buddies, our father, or me. Some incidents described happened in the seventies when we were teenagers, and I tried to capture the lifestyle and vernacular of the time.

The reader must understand that vulgar language and slang were the only things my brother understood. If you despise me, or even my family, after reading this book, then you just don’t understand what it is like growing up in a dysfunctional environment.

The following pages add up, simply, to profound sadness. Some of you may see some similarities in the actions and conduct of my father and brother and their addictions in your own families. If you have someone close to you, or perhaps someone not so close but in your family, who is an addict or alcoholic, I hope you realize that no matter if they recover or not, it is not your fault. If you feel guilty that a family member commits suicide or lives a life of drugs and alcohol, welcome to the club. Just know that there are so many lives out there that have been affected by dysfunction, and you are not alone. Please be open minded and enjoy First Bruno . . . Now This.

First Bruno . . . Now This

by Ron Welliver

Introduction

The following is the history of my life living in a dysfunctional household. My immediate family consisted of my father Arthur Sr., my mother Claire, my brother Arthur Jr., (also known as Arty, Artie, Party Arty, or A Wells), and myself (also known as Ron or Duckie). My grandfather James Hartford passed away when I was very young. We moved in with my grandmother on Faraday St. in Hyde Park in the early sixties. Hyde Park is a Boston neighborhood about eight miles south of Boston city center.

My mother never touched a drop of alcohol, and my father made up for that fifty times over. The pages of this book are incidents that are all true and the dates are approximate. I could not make these incidents up if I tried. Some of the incidents may seem that I was either mocking or making light of my father’s and brother’s behavior. I used sarcasm and humor not only because it is part of my personality but also because I feel I earned the right. It took me years of adulthood before I realized that I am a product of an alcoholic parent.

There are those out there who had two caring/loving parents to guide them in their early years of development. But there are many of us who had one good loyal parent, a mother. I, and many others, missed out on the guidance of a father to not only kick me in the ass when I needed it but also provide mentorship and leadership by example. In short, to tell us about kindness, when to assert yourself, when to fight, how to fight, how to treat the opposite sex, when to speak up, and when to keep our mouth shut. I never had that. Although our mother did her darn best, I always knew that there was something missing in my life, something in the development of my brother and me.

I was lucky enough to have a great group of friends. These boys (now grown men) saved me. I guess we could have been called a gang but not like those maggoty