Marsha De Salvatore is 42 years old. Her brother Francesco is 23 and StoryCorps Chicago’s newest full-time producer. This summer, Marsha came to Chicago to visit Francesco and they stopped by the StoryCorps booth. They talked about their relationship and Marsha’s rare blood disorder, Thalassemia. Marsha begins by talking about their mom and the time just before Francesco’s birth.

StoryCorps’ mission is to provide Americans of all backgrounds and beliefs with the opportunity to share, record and preserve their stories. These excerpts, edited by WBEZ, present some of our favorites from the current visit, as well as from previous trips.