ITALIAN TIMES THE
Published by the Italian Community Center 631 E. Chicago St., Milwaukee, WI 53202 www.ICCMilwaukee.com VOL. 36, NO. 3 SEPTEMBER 2014
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Races for vice president and directors-at-large in ICC election Giuseppe Vella will be the new president
By Thomas Hemman Times Editor With the slate now finalized, it can be reported with certainty that Giuseppe Vella will become the next president of the Italian Community Center. Dave Spano will replace the retiring Sam
Purpero as treasurer and Rose Anne (Ceraso) Fritchie and Joanne (Sanfilippo) Czubek will return to their respective offices of secretary and sergeant-at-arms. What isn’t certain is who will be the next vice president and who will win one of the four, open direc-
tor-at-large seats. Dean Cannestra is opposing Pietro Tarantino for the right to replace Vella in the vice presidency. Ten individuals are running for the director-at-large seats. They are (in alphabetical order): Ralph Busalacchi, Joe Campagna, Jr.,
37th Festa Italiana goes out with a blast
A spectacular pyrotechnics presentation by Bartolotta Fireworks Company, Inc. delievered a colorful and bombing end to the 37th annual Festa Italiana. Festa was held July 18-20 on the Summerfest grounds.
Bartolotta has been presenting the fireworks shows since the first Festa in 1978. Many more great photos and reports from Festa appear in this issue. (Times photo by Craig Schoenung)
Mario A. Carini, Ted Catalano, Edward Ciano, Joe Jannazzo, Jr., Chuck Lazzaro, George Menos, Henry Piano and Tony Zingale. Not since the 2006 election have 10 individuals been in the race for the four director seats. In case you weren’t in attendance at the Aug. 7 general meeting when the election slate was finalized, here’s what happened. The Election Committee, composed of Rosemary DeRubertis, chair, Stephanie Guttuso, Bill Dickinson, Sal Lo Coco and Ambrose Ciano made these nominations: • For President: Giuseppe “Joe” Vella; • For Vice President: Dean Cannestra; • For Treasurer: Dave Spano; • For Secretary: Rose Anne Ceraso-Fritchie; • For Sergeant-at-Arms: Joanne Czubek; • For Directors-at-Large: Mario A. Carini, Tony Zingale, Joe Jannazzo and Chuck Lazzaro. Members then had a chance to make further nominations from the floor. They offered no opponents for president, treasurer, secretary and sergeant-at-arms. Members, however, did nominate the following: • For Vice President: Pietro Tarantino; • For Directors-at-Large: Ted Catalano, Henry Piano, George Menos, Joe Campagna, Jr., Edward Ciano and Ralph Busalacchi. It should be noted that Karen Dickinson was initially nominated from the floor for vice president, but she later withdrew. Bruno Giacomantonio was also nominated from the floor for a director-at-large position, but he also withdrew. The Election Committee has confirmed that all the individuals Please turn to page 7
ICC President Gina Spang reports on successful Festa and what’s ahead for ICC
Dear Members, I am happy to report that we had a very successful Festa Italiana 2014! The weather was perfect, the grounds were busy, the entertainment was a great mix of old favorites and new acts, the Mass with Father Tim was a special celebration, the new wine selections and Regional focus were well received, the food was terrific and the fireworks were out of this world. Thank you to everyone who was involved in the planning, those who volunteered, vendors who participated, sponsors who generously
supported the event and our guests who chose to spend time with us over the weekend. As we roll off of a successful Festa, we must turn our attention to the next fun event here at the ICC. The Membership Committee has been hard at work planning our Casino Night which will take place on Friday, Sept. 12. This is sure to be a fun night and a good time for all. While we need to think about the fun events here at the ICC, we also need to think about the upcoming election. Congratulations to Joe Vella, the next
President of the ICC and thank you to each member who agreed to run for the Board. This is an important commitment and needs to be taken seriously. The members will have a number of things to think about and perhaps tough decisions to make with this year’s slate of candidates. I urge you to take a moment to reflect on the past few years and think about the direction that the organization is headed. While we have made considerable progress in improving the operations and financial health of the organization, there is much Please turn to page 12