Sarah Palmisano was the quiet force behind her family’s Bridgeport business, one of the oldest of its kind in the city by the lake.
With her late husband, Henry, she co-founded Henry’s Sports & Bait Shop, where for 65 years anglers have come seeking bait, supplies, equipment and answers to questions such as, “Are the fish biting and where?”
“Mom liked to fish, but she left the advice up to us,” said her son, Tom, who now runs the business with the help of family members.
From the beginning, Palmisano worked in the backroom, balancing the books and paying the bills. In the early 1950s, she helped get the business off the ground by digging in the family’s backyard after dark for night crawlers.
“She made sure we always had fresh bait,” her son said.
Palmisano, 93, a longtime Bridgeport resident, died of natural causes on March 9, at Mercy Hospital, her family said.
“She was so positive and never complained,” said her niece Karen Coco-Damiano. “She was an example of how to live life to the fullest, right up until the very end.”
Palmisano was the matriarch of a family well-known in the fishing community as friends and advocates, which over the years has taken the lead on matters of consequence to area anglers.
Her husband, who died in 2005, is remembered by generations as the man who sold them their first fishing rod and was a longtime supporter of local fishing events. A son, also named Henry, died in 2006 at 54 of an apparent heart attack. He served on Mayor Richard M. Daley’s Fishing Advisory Committee, which closely monitored planned developments on Lake Michigan. The Chicago Park District’s Palmisano Park in Bridgeport is named after the son.
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Even though she had long been retired, Palmisano still made her daily walk to the shop to water the plants and tidy up Henry’s Wall of Fame, which boasts photos that showcase anglers with their prized catches.
“Mom steered clear of the spotlight, but was always in the background making sure things got done,” her son said.
Palmisano, whose father emigrated from Sicily, was born in Covert, Mich., and spent her early childhood on a small farm. After her family moved to Bridgeport, she attended public schools and worked for several years at various jobs, before getting married in 1950.
Soon after, the couple opened a jewelry repair shop on Wentworth Avenue, not far from Burnham Harbor. The store had plenty of space, so in 1952 they raised a curtain and began selling live bait on the other side of the room.
A few years later, with a decrease in jewelry customers and an increase in anglers, they decided to go full-bore bait.
“They put everything into making a go of it and they never looked back,” her son said.
The store moved a couple of more times before settling into its present location almost 30 years ago at 3130 S. Canal St., just a block from where Palmisano and her husband made their home for decades.
“She loved the neighborhood, the people,” her son said. “She’d walk everywhere, doing her thing and staying active, but always looking out for her family.”
Other survivors include another son, Steve; seven grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.
Services were held.
Giangrasse Kates is a freelance reporter.