ITALIAN TIMES THE
Published 11 times annually by the Italian Community Center 631 E. Chicago St., Milwaukee, WI 53202 www.ICCMilwaukee.com SEPTEMBER 2015 • VOL. 37 NO. 3
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Cannoli for Festa’s competitive eating contests delivered in grand style
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Slate finalized for ICC election
Through the efforts of the Nominating Committee and the members who attended the Aug. 20 general meeting, a slate of officers and directors has been chosen for the Italian Community Center election. The only race will be for director-at-large seats, where five candidates have been nominated for four positions. The candidates for officer positions are:
President: Giuseppe Vella Vice President: Dean Cannestra Treasurer: Sam Purpero Secretary: Rose Anne Ceraso Fritchie Sergeant-At-Arms: Joanne Sanfilippo Czubek The candidates for director-atlarge positions are: Pietro Tarantino, Susan Christiansen, Joe Emanuele, Mary Anne Ceraso Alioto and Karen Dickinson. Please turn to page 6
A fund-raising event that generated a lot of excitement last year is returning to the Italian Community Center on Friday, Sept. 11. It’s the second annual Casino Night, sponsored by the Membership Committee. If you’ve never been to a casino, the ICC is giving you a chance to get a taste of what it’s like to win big, while keeping the stakes small, and all in a casino-like environment. Alternately, if you’ve experienced gambling fever and played in casinos, this is an opportunity to
sharpen your skills with minimal risk. Attendees will use the raffle tickets they have won to play a variety of Vegas-style games including Blackjack, Craps, Roulette and Texas Hold’Em to win great prizes. Even non-gamblers, who just want to have fun, are assured of chances to win.
Feeling lucky? Come to ICC’s Casino Night
More than 100 cannoli, the whipped ricotta-filled, chocolate chip-laden rolled pastries, were delivered in grand fashion by Roman gladiators from a booth operated by Peter Sciortino Bakery to the Cucina Showcase in time for the 2015 Festa Italiana Cannoli Champions Contests on Saturday, July 18. Leading the way were Festa’s defending (and still) cannoli-eating champion Anthony Paulis (far left) and the Roman statesman (and ICC Vice President) Dean Cannestra (far right) in a stylish toga. The cannoli were prepared and donated by Sciortino Bakery, which sponsored the two contests. Look for more photos and information on the cannoli contests inside this issue. (Times photo by Joe Spasiano)
Festa bocce brings inspiration to Carmelite Sisters
Putting aside their regular religious and orderly duties, these Carmelite Sisters still had a good deed in mind when they played in a bocce tournament at Festa on Saturday, July 18. The Carmelite Sisters were playing to raise funds for the Carmelite Home for Boys in Wauwatosa. In this photo, it appears that Sisters Faustina Marie and Rose Therese are talking strategy, while Sister Mary Brigit is aiming her green ball at the pallino. We were told that all participants had a great time playing in the tournament and enjoyed Festa. (Times photo by Joe Spasiano)
Be one of 150 attendees Casino Night is open to the general public and ICC members, their Please turn to page 7
Mario Carini used his strong attributes to define the story of local Italians and to educate people of all races
By Thomas Hemman Times Editor Passion, intellect and drive were three of the strongest attributes of Mario Anthony Carini, a past president of the Italian Community Center and the organization’s longtime authoritative and revered historian. He died July 7, at the age of 78, after a lengthy battle with cancer. Carini demonstrated these attributes while spending insurmountable hours scouring historical records of all sorts to uncover, report and publish his findings on Milwaukee’s Italian community going back to the mid 1800s. As a primary researcher, Carini devoted himself to this task out of his love for his ancestry, a compelling desire to have vital information available to the descendants of the early Italians and to ensure a fair and accurate portrayal of Milwaukee’s Italians. While uncovering massive volumes of facts, Carini has provided a valuable tool to those who write the history of
The late Mario A. Carini
Milwaukee. Through his diligence, he was able to verify or dispute claims made by others regarding specific records or other data. His efforts earned him 21 copyrights from the United States Library of Congress. He authored Please turn to page 8