"The last memory I have of my dad was when he took me outside, and he made me a chair out of ice and snow. That was a long time ago," says Rita Viselli.
When Rita was 5 years old, her father left. His involvement in the Italian mafia had him cycling in and out of prison. And when he finally faced a very stiff sentence, he opted to become an FBI informant and join the witness protection program–leaving Rita, her four younger siblings, and their mother to a life of severe poverty.
"I remember not being able to communicate how I felt," Rita says. "I just knew I didn't feel right because I didn't have a father."
