When the Gloves Fit
A Chaplain's Calling to the Clergy
Bound by Silken Thread Unraveling a Family's Legacy in Silk City
I Gatti Di Roma Roaming the Ruins of Rome
Italian Ice
The Treat that Beats the Heat
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ITALIAN AMERICA
Cook, eat, enjoy, repeat.
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SUMMER 2020
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A FAMILY. A BRAND. A LIFESTYLE.
Find this recipe and others on COLAVITA.COM ITALIAN AMERICA
SUMMER 2020
VOL. XXV No. 3
Italian America
®
T h e O ff i c i a l P u b l i c a t i o n o f t h e O r d e r S o n s a n d D a u g h t e r s o f I t a l y i n A m e r i c a ®
FEATURES
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ITALIAN ICE
The Treat that Beats the Heat By Chuck Pecoraro
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I GATTI DI ROMA
Roaming the Ruins of Rome By Peter J. Ognibene
BOUND BY SILKEN THREAD
Unraveling a Family’s Legacy in Silk City By Kristin D’Agostino
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WHEN THE GLOVES FIT
A Chaplain’s Calling to the Clergy By Miles Ryan Fisher
ON THE COVER: The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception at Catholic University in Washington, D.C. (Orhan Cam)
D E PA R T M E N T S 2 National News 3 Scholarship Recipients 4 Oggi 5 Regions 6 Pagina Italiana
11 Bulletin Board 12 Our Story 18 Book Reviews 24 Mangia 25 Speakers Bureau 26 OSDIA Nation
31 From the President's Desk 32 Foundation Focus 33 Fighting Stereotypes 34 Letters to the Editor 35 The Last Word 36 Piacere
ITALIAN AMERICA is published by the ORDER SONS AND DAUGHTERS OF ITALY IN AMERICA 219 E Street NE • Washington, DC 20002 • Phone: (202) 547-2900 • Web: www.osia.org Editor-in-Chief: Miles Ryan Fisher mfisher@osia.org Writers: Chuck Pecoraro; Peter J. Ognibene; Kristin D’Agostino Translator: Serena Lonigro Proofreader: Peggy Daino, Marlene Palazzo Graphic Designer: Diane Vincent To A dvertise: Contact ItalianAmerica@osia.org (202) 547-2900
Italian America Magazine is a publication of the Order Sons and Daughters of Italy in America (OSDIA), the nation’s biggest and oldest organization for people of Italian heritage. To subscribe, see www.osia.org or call (202) 547-2900. SUMMER 2020
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ITALIAN AMERICA
NATIONAL NEWS
ITALIAN AMERICAN ISSUES AND EVENTS
OSDIA Hosts Italian Ambassador in Live Interview Series On Wednesday, May 20, the Order Sons and Daughters of Italy in America (OSDIA) proudly hosted Italian Ambassador Armando Varricchio as part of their OSDIA Live Interview Series that was launched in April. During the exclusive interview, Ambassador Varricchio spoke about the current state of Italy and stressed the importance of the relationship between the Italian Embassy and OSDIA. The OSDIA Live Interview Series, which can be viewed on OSDIA’s Facebook page, airs every Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. Guests have included author Adriana Trigiani, actor Joe Mantegna, cooking host Mary Ann Esposito, and Capitolo di Roma Lodge’s Carmelo Cutuli and Clarissa Burt.
(Clockwise) OSDIA National First Vice President Robert Bianchi, Clarissa Burt, Ambassador Varricchio, and host/ producer/author Lisa Marie Falbo.
OSDIA National Past Beloved Strega Nona President Frank J. DeSantis Author, Tomie dePaola Passes Away Passes Away Known by all for his generosity, OSDIA National Past President Frank J. DeSantis passed away on April 25, 2020 at age 85. DeSantis, who joined the Renaissance Lodge #2259 (Orange, California) in 1972, served as OSDIA’s 26th National President from 1997 to 1999. Prior to that, he held numerous positions, including State President of the Grand Lodge of California. In 2011, he received the Guglielmo Marconi Award, OSDIA’s highest honor, for his decades of commitment and service to OSDIA and the Italian-American community. DeSantis was an ardent champion of education, having raised significant funds that provide scholarships to this day. In one instance, he raised over $250,000 of the $500,000 needed to preserve the Italian Studies Program at California State University Long Beach. Today, a total of 400 students participate in that program. For his lifetime of dedication to Italian heritage, DeSantis was honored by the Italian government with the Order of Merit of Cavalieri in 1985 and then again with the Order of Merit of Commendatore. He also received the “Targa Dora” Civic Award from the Region of Puglia. Frank will be deeply missed by everyone at the Order Sons & Daughters of Italy in America and by countless people across the country. SUMMER 2020
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An author and illustrator of more than 260 children’s books, Tomie dePaola was a popular figure in American literature and ItalItalian America ian-American culture, particularly interviewed Tomie dePaola’s fictional for his Strega Nona book series. character, Strega The series, which aptly featured a Nona, in its Winter “Grandma Witch,” involved magic 2017 issue. and a pot with endless pasta inside. It was set in Calabria, the region where dePaola’s grandparents were born. The first book of the series—entitled Strega Nona—received a Caldecott Honor in 1976 despite facing friction. It had been banned by several American libraries for its positive portrayal of magic, and according to dePaola in a previous conversation with Italian America magazine, he had been urged to make it “less ethnic” during the publishing process. DePaola’s books went on to sell 25 million copies and be translated into more than 20 languages. He received numerous awards, including the 2011 Children’s Literature Legacy Award that is given by U.S. children’s librarians to an American-born author or illustrator who has made “a substantial and lasting contribution to literature for children.” DePaola was born in Meriden, Connecticut, in 1934, and passed away last March at the age of 85. ITALIAN AMERICA
Congratulations to the 2020 Sons of Italy Foundation (SIF) National Leadership Grant Recipients
The National Italian American Bar Association & Sons of Italy Foundation Scholarship
CASEY MARIE SAVINO BERGER
Hometown: Rye, NY School: Boston University School of Law
Casey is a rising third-year student and currently ranks #6 in her class. She has received two Dean’s Awards and was elected an Articles Editor on the Boston University Law Review.
The DeNunzio Family Scholarship
SARA SANDRI
Hometown: San Jose, CA School: University of California-Los Angeles
Sara is an incoming freshman who will study molecular and cell biology with the intent of becoming a pediatrician. She is a lead volunteer at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center—where she assists patients, shadows doctors, transports patients, and oversees volunteers.
The Henry F. Salvatori Memorial Scholarship
ANNA IACOCCA
Hometown: Kennett Square, PA School: Carnegie Mellon University
Anna is an incoming freshman who will be studying chemical and biomedical engineering as well as playing collegiate basketball. She was a National Merit Finalist, Presidential Scholar Semifinalist, and Johns Hopkins University Study of Exceptional Talent.
The Pietro Secchia Memorial Scholarship
ANDREA SANDRI
Hometown: San Jose, CA School: University of California San Diego School of Medicine
Andrea is a second-year medical student, having attended UCLA for his undergraduate studies. While there, he carried out independent biomedical research focusing on neurofibromatosis type 2 in Dr. Marco Giovannini’s Neural Tumor Research Lab.
The Louis Esposito Memorial Scholarship
DANNY TURILLO
Hometown: Youngstown, OH School: University of Pittsburgh
Danny is a rising sophomore majoring in Italian, Economics, and Political Science. He plays bass trombone in the University Jazz Ensemble and Symphony Orchestra and serves as the Tournament Director of the Quiz Bowl team.
The Tomasso Scholarship
GIUSEPPE DI CERA
Hometown: St. Louis, MO School: University of Chicago
Giuseppe is an incoming freshman doublemajoring in Business Economics and Public Policy while playing collegiate soccer. He was President of his high school’s UNICEF club and helped raise $12,000 for children in need.
The Charles Evans Scholarship
JULIA FURBER
ZANE DASH
Julia is a rising junior majoring in Digital Media, Advertising and Public Relations, and Marketing. She has been on the Dean’s List each semester of attendance and will be spending a semester at John Cabot University in Rome.
Zane Dash is an incoming freshman majoring in Chemistry on a pre-medical track. He was President/Founder of his high school’s Science Fair Academy, which advanced programs that eliminate barriers to STEM education for underprivileged students in the county.
Hometown: South Easton, MA School: Loyola University Maryland
The Anthony J. & Eldora B. Perfilio Scholarship for Italian Language
ALESSANDRO ROBERTO COLANGELO Hometown: New Hyde Park, NY School: Vanderbilt University
Alessandro is a rising junior majoring in Economics and minoring in Italian Studies and Business. He is currently exploring the relationship between Italian-Americans’ sense of place and identity for his senior thesis. To contribute to the SIF Scholarship Fund, visit www.osia.org/sif ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 3
The Frank D. Privitera Family Scholarship
Hometown: Wilmington, NC School: University of North Carolina
The American University of Rome/ Sons of Italy Foundation Scholarship
ADRIAN DE LEON
Hometown: San Diego, CA School: The American University of Rome
Adrian is an incoming freshman majoring in International Business. While in high school, he completed over 1,000 hours of community service—volunteering for the All Girls STEM Society, San Diego Therapeutic Recreation Services, and the City of Poway’s Teen Volunteer Program. ITALIAN SUMMER AMERICA 2020 3
OGGI IN ITALIA
ITALY’S NEWS, POLITICS, AND CULTURE
Submerged Italian Town to Reappear An Italian town in the Lucca province of Tuscany is expected to resurface after 25 years under water. Fabbriche di Careggine, which was flooded back in 1946 to construct a hydroelectric dam, has not been seen since it was last drained in 1994. The town, which was built in the 13th century, has been drained just four times since it was first flooded—in 1958, 1974, 1983, and 1994. Next year, there is a strong possibility that the lake resting upon it—Lake Vagli—will be drained once again to give tourists the rare opportunity to walk among the ruins of the historic underwater town. When the lake was emptied in 1994, it attracted more than one million visitors. A personal story by author Paul Salsini about visiting Fabbriche di Careggine in 1994 appeared in Italian America’s Fall 2018 issue. You can view this issue of the magazine by logging onto www.osia.org or visiting www.issuu.com
Italy Reopens After more than two months of mandatory lockdown, Italy has eased into phases that saw the reopening of shops, restaurants, and bars. International flights and travel across the borders to Italy have resumed, though it is expected that tourism will be down. Those arriving in Italy will not have to quarantine.
The ruins of Fabbriche di Careggine. (Ivano Stefani)
E guarirai da tutte le malattie … ed io, avrò cura di te (And you will heal from all diseases … and I, I will take care of you) By Giovanni Guida
As of early July, Italy had more than 35,000 deaths related to COVID-19, fourth highest behind the United States, Brazil, and the United Kingdom.
Did You Know? The term “quarantine” originated under the Venetians in the 15th century during the onset of the bubonic plague, or Black Death. According to a document from 1377, ships arriving in the port of Ragusa—now Dubrovnik, Croatia, but under Venetian rule at the time— were required to anchor for 30 days before landing. In 1448, the Venetian Senate extended that period to 40 days—or quaranta giorni—which gave birth to the term “quarantine.” According to present-day estimates, the bubonic plague had a 37-day period between infection and death, making the Venetian Senate’s 40-day quarantine very effective.
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Against a dark sky, God opens his arms with a solemn and peremptory gesture. He dematerializes the molecular structure of COVID-19 to prevent its proliferation and thus avoid its spread on Europe and on Earth. Giovanni Guida’s work is meant to be a wish to humanity to defeat this pandemic and rediscover the limits of man and the value of the community.
ITALIAN AMERICA
REGIONS OF ITALY
ITALY’S TWENTY REGIONS
Campania
From Ruins to Romance With nearly six million people in just 5,000 square miles, Campania is the most densely populated region in Italy. It borders Lazio to the northwest, Molise to the north, Puglia to the northeast, and Basilicata to the southeast. To the west, it borders the Tyrrhenian Sea, which includes the Gulfs of Naples, Salerno, and Policastro. In addition to the mainland, Campania also encompasses several islands, including Capri as well as the Phlegraean Islands, which consist of Ischia, Procida, Vivara, and Nisida. Campania is known by tourists across the world for two main reasons: the ruins in Pompeii and the romantic views along the Bay of Naples. More than 2.5 million tourists visit the ruins located in Pompeii (and nearby Herculaneum), which was destroyed by the volcanic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. The ruins were buried under 15 feet of ash and not discovered until stumbled upon in 1599. FUN FACT: The name Campania comes from the Latin “Campania Felix,” which means “fertile countryside” or “happy countryside.” Of course, throngs of tourists also flock to the crystal waters in the Bay of Naples—which covers the Sorrento Peninsula, the Amalfi Coast, and the island of Capri. The Amalfi Coast, which rests on a cliff that offers dramatic views of the sea, incorporates several towns in addition to Amalfi, including Maiori, Minori, Ravello, Praiano, and Positano. Along the coastline is “Amalfi Drive,” a winding, cliffside road between Amalfi and Sorrento. True to the origin of its name, Campania boasts an agriculture where crops flourish. The region accounts for over half of Italy’s nuts and also produces 1.5 tons of
A look at Amalfi Drive that winds along the stunning views of the Amalfi Coast. (leoks) ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 5
Campitello di Fassa, a small village in Trentino that sits within the Dolomites. (Dontsov Evgeny) The ruins of Pompeii with Mount Vesuvius looming in the background. (Darryl Brooks) tomatoes annually. In addition to these, a large amount of other produce—like peppers, artichokes, lemons, and oranges—comes from this region, in part due to the rich volcanic soil surrounding Mount Vesuvius. When it comes to cuisine, Campania is famous for a few foodstuffs—but none as well known as … pizza, of course! Although there are several theories as to how pizza was invented, its rise is credited to the city of Naples, the capital of Campania.
Campania Capital: Naples Population: 5,801,692 (3rd of the 20 regions) Size: 5,250 square miles (11th of the 20 regions) Provinces: Avellino, Benevento, Caserta, Naples, Salerno In addition to pizza—and specifically Neapolitan pizza—Campania is known for its buffalo mozzarella, limoncello, and many desserts, including sfogliatelle and zeppole. The buffalo are bred in Salerno and Caserta. The limoncello is an unavoidable part of Sorrento, where lemons can grow to be the size of softballs. Sfogliatelle and zeppole pastries both have their roots in the Amalfi Coast. With so much that makes Campania recognizable— from its cities to its cuisine—it’s no wonder that Italy’s most densely populated region also takes on a large share of tourists. ITALIAN SUMMER AMERICA 2020 5
PAGINA ITALIANA
PER CHI STUDIA LA NOSTRA LINGUA
L’Uomo che assomigliava a La Russa TRANSLATED BY SERENA LONIGRO
Continua dall’edizione primaverale ... Dopo la prima lezione di Storia americana del Prof. Massaro, portai la nota al Da Alberto - Ristorante Italiano, il ristorante che mio padre aveva aperto vent’anni prima, all’inizio degli anni ‘70. Mio padre - Alberto, il cui nome era inciso sulla tenda da sole dell’ingresso - dirigeva la cucina. Mia madre, Patricia, era direttrice di sala, accoglieva i clienti che entravano e non dimenticava mai neanche un nome. Io lavoravo dopo scuola e nei weekend, sparecchiavo e lavavo i piatti, qualche volta servivo persino ai tavoli se una delle cameriere mi chiamava. Arrivavo al ristorante verso le tre e mezza del pomeriggio, facevo i compiti per circa un’ora prima che arrivassero i primi clienti. Il mio primo incarico alla scuola superiore fu quello di far firmare la nota del Prof. Massaro, così la portai a mio padre che era in cucina a preparare l’impasto per le pizze. Gli mostrai la nota e gli dissi perchè l’avevo ricevuta. “Ah, Lou,” disse, scrutando la nota mentre continuava a lavorare l’impasto, con le mani coperte di farina. “Insegna ai ragazzi com’è veramente. Buon per lui.” Guardai mio padre come per chiedere, ‘Okay, quindi la firmerai?’ “Mi ricorda di com’era per noi,” disse. “Molto tempo fa.” Guardò la nota e fece un cenno col capo. “Portala a tua madre, falla firmare a lei.” Il giorno seguente, portai la nota in classe, ma Britney Finley non aveva fatto lo stesso. “Mio padre dice che non avrei dovuto avere uno zero,” disse al Prof. Massaro dinanzi a tutta la classe. “Dice che
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non è giusto visto che non abbiamo ancora fatto neanche il compito.” “Se non hai la nota firmata,” disse il Prof. Massaro, “non potrai fare alcun compito in classe, e allora zero sarà il voto definitivo.” “Non è giusto!” urlò Britney. “No,” disse il Prof. Massaro. “Non lo è. E non alzare mai più la voce nella mia classe.” Quando finirono le lezioni, mi fermai al mio armadietto, misi i libri nello zaino e uscii, andai a prendere l’autobus che mi avrebbe portato al ristorante. Mentre attraversavo le porte a vetri della scuola, vidi il Prof. Massaro affrontare un uomo che immaginai essere il padre di Britney. Lei gli stava accanto mentre lui urlava al Prof. Massaro. Il Prof. Massaro se ne stava lì, impassibile. Quando un po’ della saliva del Sig. Finley gli colpì il viso, lui si asciugò con calma con la manica della camicia. Poi aprì la sua cartella e ne tirò fuori un foglio di carta. Mentre gli passai accanto, intravidi un angolo del foglio e lo riconobbi immediatamente. Era il modulo di domanda per lavorare Da Alberto. Guardai il Prof. Massaro, il quale accennò un sorriso verso di me, mentre tendeva il modulo al padre di Britney. “Ecco il modo migliore per sua figlia di imparare la Storia Americana,” sentii dire al Prof. Massaro. “Può iniziare lavorando.” Mi diressi verso il mio autobus e mentre attendevo seduto che il conducente chiudesse le porte, pensai a tutti i moduli che il Prof. Massaro aveva chiesto negli anni. Mi chiesi se qualcuno degli studenti a cui li avesse dati faceva parte della schiera di liceali che avevano lavorato al ristorante negli anni. Mi chiesi se Britney avrebbe effettivamente compilato la domanda e si sarebbe presentata al lavoro. Ma ancora di più, mi chiesi cosa intendesse mio padre quando diceva “Una vita fa.” E per quale motivo il Prof. Massaro quel giorno stesse piangendo.
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Serena Lonigro was born and raised in Napoli. She graduated from the University of Naples “L’Orientale” with a degree in Foreign Languages and Literatures and now works in marketing and news media.
ITALIAN AMERICA
The Man Who Looked Like La Russa BY MILES RYAN FISHER
Continued from the spring issue … After the first day of Mr. Massaro’s U.S. History class, I took the form to Alberto’s Italian Restaurant, the restaurant my father had opened twenty years ago, back in the early 1970s. My father—the Alberto whose name was on the awning—oversaw the kitchen. My mother, Patricia, was the hostess, greeting guests as they entered and never forgetting a name. I worked after school and on weekends, still bussing tables and washing dishes and now sometimes waiting tables if one of the waitresses called out. I’d get to the restaurant by three-thirty in the afternoon and work on my homework for an hour before the early customers started to arrive. My very first high school assignment was to get Mr. Massaro’s form signed, so I took it to my father while he was in the kitchen prepping dough for the pizzas. I held the form up to him and told him what it was for. “Ah, Lou,” he said, peering at the form as he continued kneading the dough, his hands covered in flour. “Teaching kids what it’s really like. Good for him.” I looked at my dad, as if to ask, ‘So then you’ll sign it?’ “Reminds me of what it was like for us,” he said. “Way back before.” He looked at the form and nodded. “Take it to your mother and have her sign it.”
Mr. Massaro stood there, unperturbed. After some of Mr. Finley’s saliva struck his face, he calmly wiped it off with the sleeve of his shirt. Then he opened his satchel and took out a sheet of paper. As I walked by, I caught a glimpse of the paper and recognized it right away. It was an application to work at Alberto’s. I looked at Mr. Massaro, who smiled slightly while giving me a cursory glance as he held out the application for Britney’s father. “Here’s a better way for your daughter to learn U.S. History,” I heard Mr. Massaro say. “She can begin by working.” I got on my bus and as I sat, waiting for the driver to pull the bus doors shut, I thought about the applications Mr. Massaro had asked for those past years. I wondered if any of the students he’d given them to had been the high school students who’d worked at the restaurant. I wondered if Britney would actually fill out the application and show up to work. But more so, I wondered just what my father meant when he’d said, “Way back before.” And what it was about that time that made Mr. Massaro weep.
The next day, I brought the form into class. Britney Finley did not. “My daddy says I shouldn’t have a zero,” she told Mr. Massaro in front of the whole class. “He says it’s not fair when we haven’t even taken a test yet.” “If you don’t have the form signed,” Mr. Massaro said, “then you won’t be able to take any tests, and you’ll have a permanent zero.” “But that’s not fair!” Britney yelled. “No,” Mr. Massaro said. “It isn’t. And do not raise your voice in my classroom again.” After the school day ended, I stopped by my locker, filled my backpack with books, and walked out toward the bus that would take me to the restaurant. On my way through the school’s glass doors, I saw Mr. Massaro facing a man whom I assumed was Britney’s father. She stood at his side as he shouted at Mr. Massaro. ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 7
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Italian Ice The Treat that Beats the Heat
(Anna Om)
Thus, Europe and various parts of the world became familiar with what is now known as Italian ice. Not to be confused with granita or sorbet, the cool concoction later made its debut in the United States when it was introduced by Italian immigrants who’d settled primarily in the Northeast. One of the pioneers of Italian ice is Caterina Di Cosmo, who emigrated from Italy to an Italian-American enclave in Peterstown, New Jersey. She and her husband, Giovanni, opened Di Cosmo’s, a neighborhood grocery, in 1915 that became a destination for the frosty favorite. When sales multiplied, they expanded with an adjoining shack made from salvaged wood that exclusively featured the product. BY CHUCK PECORARO
Back in 17th century Sicily, whenever the summer sun sent the temperature soaring, the locals sought to beat the heat with a simple but satisfying treat. They gathered snow from the upper levels of Mount Etna, infused it with fruit or wine, and relished what then was referred to as water ice. According to historians, Roman Emperor Nero ordered his slaves to climb the mountain and fetch snow for him to make icy morsels and cool his drinks. The refreshment and its uncomplicated recipe eventually caught on in other regions of Italy as well as Greece, France, Spain, and Great Britain. What’s more, cultures ranging from Turkish and Arabic to Chinese claimed that the frozen tidbits had found a way into their respective diets, too. SUMMER 2020
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Di Cosmo’s Italian Ice of Elizabeth, New Jersey, celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2015. (Photo Courtesy of Di Cosmo’s Italian Ice) ITALIAN AMERICA
Another example of Italian ice’s transition from humble beginnings to nationwide acceptance is due to Bob Tumolo. The former Philadelphia firefighter started selling it from his porch in Bensalem, Pennsylvania, during the scorching summer of 1984. When sales took off, he formed a company and named it after his wife, Rita. After thriving at three Philadelphia sites, Rita’s Italian Ice was franchised and expanded to more than 600 locations across the country. Rita’s formula focuses on freshness. Whatever isn’t sold after 36 hours is discarded. The flavors and consistency are preserved by adding chunks of fresh fruit. Nancy and John Di Cosmo, who have helped run Di Cosmo’s for half a century. (Photo Courtesy of Di Cosmo’s Italian Ice)
The Di Cosmo’s version came out smooth and less granular than granita, and was accented with the tart tone of freshly squeezed lemons. It was not only an instant hit with the townsfolk, but also with visitors who came from far and wide. Fast forward to today, and the same shop remains in the family. The ice used to make the blend is no longer shipped via horse and buggy in 300-pound blocks, but by modern vehicles. Production equipment has likewise seen its share of changes. Nancy Di Cosmo, who married into the family in 1969, helps run the third-generation operation with her husband, John. They begin each morning with a fresh delivery of ice, fruit, and juices from local New Jersey suppliers, and they proceed to craft a rotating menu of at least two dozen flavors. Customers keep coming back with their children and grandchildren in tow.
The demand for Italian ice in the U.S. continues to grow as it is passed down from generation to generation. In the greater New York City area, the product is available at 28 different locations. By comparison, Chicago and surrounding suburbs has 16 locations.
Common flavors include lemon (often called lemon ice), orange, peach, watermelon, strawberry, cherry, and coffee. Among the more exotic tastes are mango, guava, green tea, and tamarind. One of them is Little Lulu’s, where handcrafted artisan Italian ice is offered year-round. That’s unique considering that Chicago is noted for frigid winters, and slurping on frozen treats in freezing weather doesn’t appeal to everyone. Established in 1916, Little Lulu’s is a one-woman operation in an ever-changing neighborhood with residents of various nationalities.
Stored in 100-year-old wooden barrels, the soothing slush is relatively easy to prepare. The fruit is zested, sliced, and juiced by hand. Then cane sugar is added and the contents are churned before being poured into a stainlesssteel tube nestled in a barrel filled with cracked ice and rock salt. The salt lowers the freezing point so the finished product maintains an ideal temperature throughout the day. Flavors are determined by whatever fruit is in season. Among the Di Cosmos’ legion of loyal customers is celebrity chef and Elizabeth, New Jersey-native Tom Colicchio, who said, “Italian ice was part of my childhood. My summers weren’t complete unless I went there at least once a week. That’s why everybody who grew up eating Italian ice keeps coming back for more.” ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 9
One of the first Rita’s Water Ice locations that were opened in Philadelphia. (Photo Courtesy of Rita’s Water Ice) ITALIAN SUMMER AMERICA 2020 9
essence of fresh fruit. Flavors range from typical ones like lemon, watermelon, and coconut to more unusual ones like pumpkin and pomegranate. She also stocks Lulupops, which are made with the same base and frozen on a stick. On the West Coast, Los Angeles and San Francisco are populated with a substantial core of Italian Americans who form a primary market for Italian ice. Los Angeles has 27 places where one can find it, while San Francisco has at least a dozen such shops. Both areas include a Rita’s. But you don’t have to search here and there for Italian ice that melts in your mouth. It’s easy to whip up a batch right at home, especially in the dog days of summer. Chuck Pecoraro has been writing about food, wine and travel for more than 30 years, a total of over 1,600 such articles for the Chicago Sun-Times and other prominent publications and websites.
Italian Ice Recipe (4 cups) Little Lulu’s owner, Autumn Bastyr. (Photo Courtesy of Little Lulu’s)
Owner/Manager/Creator Autumn Bastyr says she became infatuated with Italian ice at a young age and experimented with flavors and methods until she had an opportunity to become an entrepreneur and go into business for herself. She named her venture after the spunky comic book character Lulu Moppett. Bastyr’s ice is fluffy, unlike granita and other versions with granular flakes. Her creations capture the ripe, radiant
* 3 cups of ice. * 2 cups of fresh fruit, chopped. * 2 to 4 tablespoons of granulated sugar or honey. * 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice. 1. Put fruit, juice, sugar and 2 cups of ice in food processor bowl or blender. 2. Blend until chunky, then add remaining ice. Blend until smooth. 3. Pour into a baking dish and place in freezer for 30 minutes. 4. After 30 minutes, remove from freezer and scrape with a fork until slushy. Put back in freezer for 2 more hours. 5. After 2 hours, pour ice into cups. Let them sit for 5 minutes until it softens, or put in blender until it forms a slushy consistency. 6. Scoop, serve and savor
Little Lulus: Chicago’s Little Lulu’s Italian Ice was originally opened in 1916. (Photo Courtesy of Little Lulu’s) SUMMER 2020
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ITALIAN AMERICA
BULLETIN BOARD
WHAT’S NEW: DISCOUNTS, SERVICES AND EVENTS
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The 2019 SIF scholarship recipients at the NELA Gala.
ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 11
ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 11
OUR STORY
ITALIAN AMERICAN HISTORY AND CULTURE
A Roma! OSDIA Establishes First Lodge in Italy Last February, the Order Sons & Daughters of Italy in America (OSDIA) proudly installed its first lodge in Italy: the Capitolo di Roma Lodge #3002. After 115 years of existence, the OSDIA presented the lodge’s founder, Carmelo Cutuli, and its 25 members with the very first charter for a lodge outside of the United States and Canada. The Capitolo di Roma Lodge is made up of members all across Italy—Sicily to Lombardy, Apulia to Lazio—and is located in Rome, close to Piazza Barberini along Via Veneto. “I went on OSDIA’s website,” Cutuli said, “and when I read the story, I found me. People like Vincenzo Sellaro from Palermo.” Like OSDIA Founder Dr. Vincenzo Sellaro, Cutuli was also born in Sicily, hailing from the city of Catania. He now lives in Rome and was searching for a club that would facilitate connections and projects between Italy and the United States. Having been an At-Large Member in the past, OSDIA came to the forefront of his mind. He contacted OSDIA’s National Office and worked closely with the Membership Committee and its Co-Chair Dr. Mark DeNunzio to form the first-ever lodge in Italy. “This is a landmark moment in the Order’s 115-year history,” said OSDIA National President Nancy DiFiore Quinn. “It’s with the utmost pride that we have installed the first lodge in the country where our ancestors came from.” In just a short time, the Capitolo di Roma Lodge has already made its mark. It initiated its first honorary
Clarissa Burt is presented with Capitolo di Roma’s Honorary Member Certificate by (L. to R.) Claudio Frasca, Secretary; Carmelo Cutuli, Founder and President; and Paolo Quattrocchi, Co-founder and Trustee. member, Clarissa Burt, an American model and actress well-known throughout Italy. In addition to this, the lodge has also received several commendations celebrating its establishment, including official letters from the Sicilian Regional Government and The Italian Association for the European Council of Municipalities and Regions (AICCRE). The lodge also created a podcast to commemorate the inaugural “Dante Day” on March 25, 2020. Though the coronavirus outbreak has made its first few months more difficult for the lodge, Cutuli embraces their good fortune for having been installed prior to the pandemic. He insists that with “the same spirit as Vincenzo Sellaro” the lodge will transcend. “We have the Italian DNA, the capacity to overcome,” he said. “I feel this spirit, and this is the reason I am in OSDIA. OSDIA is an organization with a soul. Italian soul.”
The members of Capitolo di Roma Lodge #3002. SUMMER 2020
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Capitolo di Roma’s charter is the first for a lodge outside of the U.S. and Canada. ITALIAN AMERICA
OUR STORY
ITALIAN AMERICAN HISTORY AND CULTURE
When Impulse Pays Off in Paesani BY CHARLES SACCHETTI
In the fall of 2012, I saw the PBS promo for Paesani: Italian Culture in Northeast Pennsylvania, which would air the next evening. Being a grandson of Italian immigrants, I was naturally drawn to the title. The program documented how a group of Italians settled in the area around Scranton, Pennsylvania, and showed their hardships as they traveled on crowded boats in hope of a better life. The program included interviews with older people who immigrated as children or whose parents did so. They related personal stories in a way that made you feel as if you were among them. With one such interviewee, that’s exactly what would happen. Eighty-five-year-old Al Pisa was interviewed from his home in the “Bunker Hill” section of Dunmore, Pennsylvania. He reminded me of my father’s beloved deceased cousin, Frank. Like Frank, Al’s personality filled the room. His family stories were told in a way that grabbed your attention and made you smile. When he spoke, you could see and feel his love. His wife, Angie, and son, Carlo, also appeared in the show, with Carlo explaining how his neighbors came from the same mountain village, Guardia dei Lombardi in the Campania region. Their close relationships simply relocated to Pennsylvania. The next morning, my wife and I returned from Sunday mass. Still thinking of the Paesani documentary, I suddenly decided to call Al. I reasoned, how many 85-year-old Al Pisa’s can there be? After googling Al Pisa, Dunmore, PA, the first one listed was him. I called the number, and Angie answered. I explained I was an Italian guy from New Jersey who saw the PBS show and wanted to tell Al how much I enjoyed him. “Ok hold on,” Angie simply said.
In May, I called Carlo and was greeted with a moment of silence. Al had passed away just weeks before. After offering my condolences, I said that I intended to honor my promise to Al, and we set a date to get together. My friend, Bill Winarski, and I made the 2½ hour trip and had a lunch that was like spending time with your beloved family. Carlo told me about Al’s annual tradition of hosting a Bocce Tournament for his friends at his home. Carlo vowed to continue it and invited Bill and me to attend in October. We did and, boy, did we have a ball! Under the large grapevine we enjoyed many appetizers—salami, prosciutto, various cheeses, hot and sweet peppers, tomatoes, eggplant, and crusty Italian bread. After hours of food, wine, laughs, hugs, and of course—bocce— we had a large dinner that ended with incredible pastries created by Dave “The Mailman” Evanko, who makes his living as a postman though his true passion is baking. Now dubbed “The Jersey Boys,” Bill and I will be making our annual trip for the Al Pisa Memorial Bocce Tournament this fall. Carlo, his son Alfredo, Mailman Dave, and about 25 others have become cherished friends. All because of one impulsive moment in which I picked up the phone to call Al. And God bless Al, who I know orchestrated every move. Charles Sacchetti (Worthwhilewords21@gmail.com) is the author It’s All Good: Times and Events I’d Never Want to Change and Knowing He’s There: True Stories of God’s Subtle Yet Unmistakable Touch.
After Al’s warm greeting, we had a wonderful conversation in which I shared just how much I admired his story. By the end of the conversation, he invited me to visit, and after I agreed, we said ciao. Moments later, my phone rang. The caller ID said Al Pisa. “What’s up, Al?” I said. “No, this isn’t Al. It’s his son, Carlo. I just wanted to thank you for calling and making my father’s day.” I told Carlo I’d be in touch in the spring so we could all meet for lunch.
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The Al Pisa Memorial Bocce Tournament is hosted every fall in Dunmore, PA.
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I Gatti di Roma Roaming the Ruins of Rome
BY PETER J. OGNIBENE
In the 1920s, Benito Mussolini sought to demolish the Roman ruins in Largo Torre Argentina to make way for the stark architecture that was then transforming the face of Italian cities. But everything came to a halt when workers unearthed the large marble head, right arm and feet of Fortuna Huiusce Diei, a Roman goddess whose name can be translated as “Fortune of this Day”—or more colloquially, “Lady Luck.” The statue was sculpted to commemorate the Roman victory at Vercellae in Cisalpine Gaul in 101 BC. Excavated more than 2,000 years later, it now resides at Centrale Montemartini, a branch of Rome’s Capitoline Museums dedicated primarily to statues, burial vaults, and mosaics.
(Kathleen Ognibene)
SUMMER 2020 (Kathleen Ognibene)
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ITALIAN AMERICA
(The singular feminine noun, gattara, has its English-language counterpart in “cat lady.”) The area lacked running water. So, the gattare not only brought in food, but also collected water in jugs from Roman street fountains. They cleaned up feces and debris and often took sick or injured cats to a veterinarian. They paid for everything out of their own pocketbooks. The large marble head, right arm, and feet of Fortuna Huiusce Diei, a Roman goddess whose name can be translated as “Fortune of this Day” or, more colloquially, “Lady Luck.” Excavated in 1929, it now resides at Centrale Montemartini, a branch of Rome’s Capitoline Museums dedicated primarily to statues, burial vaults and mosaics.
There was a brief period in the early 20th century when the City of Rome paid butchers for cattle stomachs (tripe) and fed it to the cats that patrolled government offices
The statue’s discovery signified that this was no ordinary ground but a place once held sacred in Rome. Land clearing ceased, and archaeologists began research that would uncover, and ultimately identify, four temples—including Pompey’s Theater, the place where Julius Caesar was assassinated in 44 BC.
I Gatti Move In
As the archaeologists finished their research and began moving out, feral cats began moving in. With upturned slabs of stone perfect for sunning and innumerable hiding places perfect for shelter against wind and rain, it proved prime feline real estate. Regrettably, it also became a dumping ground for cats and kittens abandoned by their owners.
Fortunately, some kind-hearted Romans, almost exclusively women, stepped in and began feeding the cats. Perhaps the most prominent gattara was actress Anna Magnani, who lived in Rome and often performed at the Teatro Argentina, just across the street from the ruins.
Silvia Viviani, Co-founder and Director of Torre Argentina Sanctuary. (Kathleen Ognibene)
to prevent mice from devouring documents. When the mayor decided to eliminate the expense, an underling explained to the public: “Non c’è trippa per gatti.” (There’s no tripe for cats.) That expression lives on and is today the Italian equivalent of “No way!” or “Not gonna happen!” A century later, the policy itself remains unchanged: no government funding for cats.
Le Gattare Get Organized
(Kathleen Ognibene)
Largo Torre Argentina is just three blocks directly south of the Pantheon. ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 15
In 1993, Silvia Viviani, recently retired from her job of 30 years, took a leisurely stroll through the city and paused along the perimeter of Torre Argentina, as Romans often do, to watch the cats at play and (mostly) ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 15
at rest. She saw two gattare amid the cats and assumed they were part of an organized group that looked after the animals. When she met the women, she learned there was no organization. They were simply volunteers who saw a need and were trying to fill it. That encounter introduced Silvia to Lia Dequel. The two soon began working together to feed and care for the cats—an experience that inevitably forced them to conclude that the hit-and-miss efforts of volunteers, however heartfelt and well-intentioned, would never be enough. That led in 1994 to their creating the Colonia Felina di Torre Argentina (Torre Argentina Cat Sanctuary), a non-profit organization dedicated to meeting the daily needs of i gatti di Roma. “Some cats are brought in by cat ladies because they have been hit by a car—the cats, not the ladies—or have been the victims of various accidents, or just need some days of rest after sterilization,” Silvia told me. “We offer a sort of hospitalization in our transit room, and those treatments that can be given with the prescription of a vet. “Once recovered, they can go back to their colonies. If they are permanently injured or handicapped, or too old, or too sick, they are upgraded to the status of permanent boarders or residents, and, after recovery, tests, and vaccinations, transferred to the nursery. There may be healthy and young cats abandoned because of the death of their owners. Of course, they become permanent residents, too, and after the period in the transit room, spend their first two or three months in the nursery just to make [them] acquainted with their companions and with us. Then, in due time, they are released and left free to choose to remain in the common space or go and live [among the feral cats] in the great area.”
An Ongoing Mission
The sanctuary relies on donations from individuals, who see cats frolicking or sleeping amid the ancient ruins, spot the Welcome sign at street level, and go down the adjacent set of stairs to the gardinetto (little garden) tucked between the ancient walls. That’s how my wife, Kathleen, and I happened upon the sanctuary several years ago. We return every time we go to Rome.
(Kathleen Ognibene)
Silvia, her staff, and their many cats are based in a utilitarian space of about 1,100 square feet amid the pillars and steel beams that support the street above. It resembles nothing so much as an old underground garage. Cats are everywhere—in the makeshift office and adjacent dormitory—and can freely wander into the gardinetto through a gattaiola, the delightful Italian word for a cat-sized door flap. The total cat population numbers about 150. Some are feral cats that found their way into the ancient ruins and stay because the sanctuary provides food twice a day. The rest are domesticated cats that have been fostered by volunteers as kittens or older cats that have been placed in the shelter when their owners can no longer care for them. The primary goal of the sanctuary is to protect the health and well-being of both groups by: • Testing for communicable diseases to prevent their spread, and • Spaying each female and neutering each male to prevent reproduction
(Kathleen Ognibene)
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Each new arrival is tested for feline leukemia, feline immunodeficiency virus, and other diseases. The cat is then spayed or neutered and, once it has recuperated from the procedure, set free within the grounds. ITALIAN AMERICA
level ever. Cats are fed, cared for and rooms and cages are sanitized… but no sterilizations, no adoptions, no welcoming disabled cats. We are not doing what is in our DNA! And we don’t know when coming fully back to our work will be possible.
(Kathleen Ognibene)
Grumpy (center) and his companions, Brutus (left) and Calibano (right).
Some feral cats occasionally choose to stay in the sanctuary, but most opt for the open archaeological area, returning to their separate feeding spot twice a day.
“We were fortunate that feeding stray animals was considered vital. So, five volunteers were allowed to go and feed the cats, making shifts. Usually they are on the spot from 11am to 5pm. They can circulate thanks to a certificate they must always bring with them and produce on request. Usually the policeman, reading that they are going to feed the Torre Argentina cats, smiles and lets them pass, without any further delay. This means being popular.
Though local veterinarians give the sanctuary a discount, the cost per cat for the full battery of tests, inoculations, and sterilization runs about 76 Euros (roughly $84 US). Multiply that by the number of cats (6,912) that the sanctuary sterilized in 2019, and it provides a glimpse into the magnitude of the annual expenses the sanctuary must bear. Romans know that this is the place to adopt a cat, and when they do, they reimburse the costs associated with their new pet. In 2019, the sanctuary received 101 new cats and arranged 82 adoptions. While feral cats cannot be adopted, most of the domesticated cats are eligible for adoption. Those that are not, typically animals with significant injuries or disease, become permanent residents. Italian law forbids euthanizing healthy shelter animals. Though actual adoptions are limited to people who live in or near Rome, the sanctuary also encourages “adoption at a distance.” The typical donation is 15 Euros per month, which the donor can extend over several months or the entire year. On our visit in 2018, Kathleen and I met Grumpy, whose gentle disposition belies his name. Kathleen “adopted” Grumpy on the spot and renewed his adoption for another year during our return in 2019. It is, of course, a symbolic adoption, but the sanctuary keeps in touch by email and sends each “adoptive parent” a photo of the cat and an update on his or her activities every year.
I Gatti vs. Coronavirus
To fight the coronavirus that has been devastating Italy, the government prohibits public gatherings. As a result, Torre Argentina has been closed to visitors since March 9. Silvia and her colleagues are keeping the sanctuary in operation, but, she said, “Our activities are at the lowest ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 17
(Kathleen Ognibene)
“Sometimes we feel in despair. This awful virus is a damned traveler! And maybe very soon all the countries will be overwhelmed. How can our shelter survive?” Because visitors can no longer drop into the shelter and make a contribution on the spot, the sanctuary is increasingly reliant on individuals worldwide who appreciate what it has been doing for more than a quarter of a century and continues to do under the heinous specter of COVID-19. You can follow the work of Torre Argentina via its website (https://www.gattidiroma. net). There is also a Facebook Group, Gatti di Roma – Roman Cats. On either site, you can make a donation by credit card or PayPal. Peter Ognibene (pjognibene@gmail.com) has authored two books and hundreds of newspaper and magazine articles. This is his tenth feature article for Italian America magazine. ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 17
BOOK REVIEWS
SUMMER 2020 SELECTIONS
THANK YOU UNCLE SAM: From Calabria to America, Family Stories of Emigration By Niall Allsop
Inspired by the many conversations he had upon retiring to Calabria, Thank You Uncle Sam is an intriguing account of Irish-born author Niall Allsop’s journey stateside in a quest to uncover the stories behind several Calabrian families and their immigration to the United States. What Allsop unearths are stories that, at times, prove that truth can indeed be stranger than fiction. His tour takes him across the country—from New York and New Jersey to Illinois, Wisconsin, and New Mexico. During these travels, he learns about a woman who raised her family on livestock and vegetables because she didn’t know that her husband’s checks could be cashed, a woman who received several marriage proposals including one from her engaged cousin upon traveling back to Calabria, and the deeply emotional story involving the separation of siblings who reunited 62 years later.
DID YOU KNOW? In Calabria, married women retained their maiden names. Through these stories, readers will learn not just about individual family history, but also general immigration history as well. Perhaps the most eye-opening evidence presented in Allsop’s research asserts that the errors on travel documents—such as the misspellings of names and inaccurate birth dates—more likely occurred in Italy upon embarkation rather than at Ellis Island upon arrival. One of the most enjoyable dynamics of this book occurs when Allsop gathers family members together and each one begins sharing details of their family history that the others never knew about. After reading Thank You Uncle Sam, you will certainly be tempted to crack open some of Allsop’s other southern Italy-inspired books, including Stumbling Through Italy and Scratching the Toe of Italy. SUMMER 2020
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CONSTANT TIDES: A Story of Messina
By Peter Crawley
An ambitious undertaking, Peter Crawley’s Constant Tides is a three-part book set in Messina, Sicily, and its surrounding towns. It travels through history and generations of characters in a fluid yet edifying manner. The first part takes place during the 1908 Messina earthquake and portrays the destruction through the eyes of two lovers—Lilla Lunapiena and Enzo Ruggieri. Crawley offers a vivid depiction of death and destruction, giving readers a glimpse of the horror brought on by the earthquake—the crumbling of buildings, the swell of tidal waves, the unfathomable loss of life. He effectively illustrates the many forms that human interaction assumes in the face of tragedy—some of it beautifully altruistic, some of it sickeningly selfish.
DID YOU KNOW? Male swordfish will not abandon its female mate when she is caught. It will essentially surrender itself to the fishermen. The second part takes place during the early 1940s in the midst of World War II when Messina was occupied by Italian and German soldiers as Allied forces were landing. Crawley highlights the devastation that Mussolini brought to Messina, while also depicting the allure that brought Messina to Mussolini. The third part takes place in present-day Messina. A thoroughly researched novel with the help of many Messina natives, Constant Tides follows characters that span three generations. Beginning with Lilla and Enzo, the ensuing plots involve those who come after them in a story of love and culture that is both lost and found. Meanwhile, the novel’s story is set against one very fitting backdrop: fishing. Perhaps the perfect mirror for the city of Messina and the characters of Constant Tides, a fisherman’s life on the sea is both harsh and beautiful—particularly for the fishermen in the novel, who hunt swordfish. ITALIAN AMERICA
On The Bookshelf Books by and about Italian Americans
Father Nicholas A. Marziani, Jr. Presents A two-PArt series
By John C. Alessio (2020)
Holy Fool, Holy Father A young Russian and his lady companion discover an unexpected call as they come of age, bringing them all the way to Rome in order to embrace a destiny that will astonish them while they bless the world.
SEQUEL TO HOLY FOOL HOLY FATHER
FOOLS’ JOURNEY
THE SHOWDOWN
Fools’ Journey: The Showdown In this sequel, the pope leads an overland expedition to Jerusalem to confront an ancient pretender who threatens to enslave the world in the wake of global chaos.
NICHOLAS A. MARZIANI, JR.
With tears and Laughter
Will he return alive to Rome?
Both titles now available in Paperback and Electronic Formats on Amazon (https://amzn.to/3dsJm6K) and wherever fine books are sold.
With Tears and Laughter An Immigrant Voyage
John C. Alessio
As eighteen-year-old Lorenzo Adamani works his way down the Aspromonte mountainside toward the coastal town of Gioia Tauro, he is carrying a small hemp sack over his shoulder – a sack containing everything he owns. It is the beginning of a long journey into indentured servitude, arranged marriage, a large Italian family, and a confused American Dream.
Available at www.BarnesAndNoble.com
Walworth Street to Wall Street How an $85 a Week Clerk Became a $100 Million Investment Banker A Wall Street Memoir by Pasquale “Pat” Scida Italian America, Wall Street, and Brooklyn collide to produce The American Dream Pasquale “Pat” Scida, deeply rooted in his Calabrian ancestry, marries and takes an entry level position on Wall Street. A willingness to accept challenges and do any job to propel him forward, as the markets and the political and world events that affect them become his backyard. But the hard edges of Corporate America get in the way. His ethnicity, Brooklyn origins and his own insecurities hold him back. At home his success on Wall Street is criticized by family and friends because he’s “sold out and gone in with the da big guys,” and “nobody knows what the hell those guys on Wall Street are doing.”
Walworth Street to Wall Street is an Italian-American success story, a Brooklyn story, a family story, and an inside look at Wall Street.
Available In Paperback and Electronic Form On Amazon and Barnes & Noble ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 19
ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 19
BY KRISTIN D’AGOSTINO
I like to imagine my great-grandma, Anna, at 37 walking home from the silk factory in Paterson, New Jersey, during the late 1930s. Her long, gleaming black hair, never once cut, would be coiled into a bun—sweaty tendrils escaping around her temples. Her olive cheeks would be flushed from working for six hours as a quill winder beside tall windows that let in the burning sun. With her two sisters by her side, she’d walk the three miles home to Hawthorne in silence, too weary to gossip, her heart comforted by the thought of the pot of pasta e fagioli her ten-year-old daughter would have waiting for supper. Anna (née De Negri) Pecchia had arrived in the U.S. in 1907 along with her father, grandmother, two sisters, and three brothers. Having had a cousin in Italy who owned a silk factory, they’d presumably had some work experience and were able to gain American sponsorship through a cousin who’d opened a factory in Paterson. My ancestors worked at this mill for a decade before the three brothers Tony, Louie, and Alec borrowed money to start a factory of their own. Made up of 20 looms, the De Negri Brothers’ Factory was a small outfit that employed mostly family SUMMER 2020
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members, including my great-grandmother. Few in my family remember the factory firsthand. My grandmother’s brother—my Great Uncle Sant Pecchio, 97—and his cousin Joe Landi, 83, both worked there as boys when they were 15 and 9, respectively. Joe’s father Valentino, who married a De Negri sister, worked as a mechanic and textile designer. Joe recalls accompanying his dad, who was part owner of the mill, to
work on weekends and occasionally being called upon to help out when a machine got out of sync. “I’d cut and tie all the threads that needed to be retied,” he says. “They utilized my tiny little fingers. This was not child labor we’re talking about. This was a mom of nine trying to get rid of her youngest son and sending him along with Dad to work.” My family’s factory was known for its richly patterned Jacquard fabrics
The De Negri family not long after their arrival from Caserta, Italy. Anna (the author’s great-grandmother) stands at the far right at age 17. In the front is Luigi and Antonio De Negri of the De Negri Brother’s Factory. Their brother Alec would arrive in U.S. later on with their mother. ITALIAN AMERICA
that contained lamé, a metallic thread from France. Through the years they fashioned silk for draperies, priests’ robes, furniture upholstery, and, according to family lore, a shimmery gown that Eleanor Roosevelt wore to the inaugural ball of 1933. Though it’s been decades since his last childhood visit, Joe’s memories are surprisingly vivid. He recalls playing with wooden spools as if they were Lincoln Logs, hearing the steady cacophony of the looms, and smelling the oil his father used to grease the machines. “It had a distinctive odor that permeated everything,” he recalls. “I remember [after my dad died] his wool overcoat was hanging in the closet and for a number of years it still smelled of that oil.”
THE BIRTH OF SILK CITY Standing atop the 77-foot-high Paterson Great Falls it’s not hard to imagine how this city of 146, 000 was once America’s cradle of industry. Though the city was booming with factories in the early 1800s, turning out everything from locomotives to firearms, it wasn’t until John Ryle arrived on the scene that it earned its nickname of Silk City. John Ryle (who later served as Paterson’s mayor from 1869-1870) had been a “bobbin boy” growing up in Cheshire, England. After working in factories through OSIA members benefit from a 10% discount on all our services!
his youth, he set sail for America and settled in Paterson, New Jersey, hoping to earn his fortune. In 1835, Ryle bought one of the city’s first struggling silk factories and transformed it into a great success. As Ryle’s factory grew, other silk mills were born, and by 1913 there were 300 factories that employed skilled immigrants from around the world. Italians made up the greatest percentage of the workforce, followed by Jews, Germans, English, and French.
for their years of experience. As one Connecticut factory owner reflected, weaving could not easily be taught. “… Take a man from a farm in the United States and it’s a very different matter to make a silk worker of that man… than from taking men who have been brought up in countries where silk is produced…A man with clumsy, awkward hands handling silk warp is a very different factor than the man whose grandfather before him handled the silk fabric.”
At first the Italians did not assimilate well, says New Jersey historian and author Steve Golin. “The Northern Italians were prejudiced against the Southern Italians. They looked down on [them] as backwards.” Diverse dialects and cultural differences added to the conflict. Soon, however, the Italians bonded over the prejudice they both faced in their new home. Up until 1910 there was only one church in Paterson, and like the police force, it was Irish. Facing discrimination pushed the Italians to band together to build their own community of shops, restaurants, and churches.
Paterson remained the hub of the American silk industry through the 1930s with highly skilled weavers running its looms. But according to Evelyn Hershey, Education Director at the American Labor Museum in Haledon, New Jersey, conditions in the mills, especially in the early 1900s, were often “deplorable.” Workers labored for ten hours a day, five days a week, and then five hours on Saturdays. Many dye-house workers often worked double shifts. The factories’ lighting and ventilation were poor and the noise was deafening. Children were often employed to do jobs that required small bodies and fingers. “Bobbin Boys and Girls” changed the wooden bobbins on machines when they ran out of thread and climbed up on moving parts of machines where adults couldn’t reach. Women weavers risked losing part of their hair, or even
Many skilled weavers came from Italy’s Naples region, which had a commune of weavers who had been producing silk for over a century. These workers, though prideful and more likely to strike, were valued
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• Discover centuries of information about your roots through our research services onsite in Italy • Obtain your Italian Dual Citizenship by working with us to manage the application process. For more information, visit www.myitalianfamily.com, or call 1-888-472-0171 ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 21
ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 21
strike for a total of eight months. The strike gained support from Greenwich Village writers and intellectuals of the time who were advocating for quality of life. One writer said, “They who cherish hopes of poetry will therefore do well to favor in their day every assault of labor upon the monopoly of leisure by a few. They will be ready for a drastic redistribution of the idle hours.”
Joe Landi, around seven years old, with his father Valentino and mother Giovanna (Jenny).
their scalp, if their hair got caught in a moving machine. The dyer’s job was perhaps worst of all. “Dyers were expected to taste the thread dye in order to determine the proportion of chemicals,” Hershey says. “They also inhaled toxic vapors from big vats of boiling water.”
THE STRIKE OF 1913 In January 1913, a strike broke out at the Dougherty Silk Company in nearby Clifton, and 60 strikers took to the streets to protest new work demands. Dougherty, the factory owner, had changed the number of machines workers were responsible for from two to four, reduced his workforce by half, and kept wages the same. Soon, encouraged by the Industrial Workers of the World, an advocacy group that supported immigrants, more workers throughout the city went on strike, petitioning their employers for better working conditions. Altogether, 300 mills shut down and 24,000 men and women of all backgrounds went on SUMMER 2020
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Strikers met weekly and gatherings became lively exchanges complete with rousing speeches, sing-alongs, and brass band music. When police padlocked city meeting halls, an Italian weaver named Pietro Botto offered up his home and its adjacent green as a meeting place. His home— The Pietro Botto House—is now the site of the American Labor Museum. “Well known labor leaders of the time such as Elisabeth Gurly Flynn and William “Big Bill” Haywood spoke from the second-floor balcony to more than 20,000 workers,” explains Evelyn Hershey. During the strike, hundreds of children were sent away to live with “strike parents” in New York, families who volunteered to care for them. There were fundraisers held to earn money for the strikers, the largest of which was a pageant or staged reenactment of the strike put on at Madison Square Garden. “There were vignettes, highlights of the strike assisted by New York City artists and writers,” says Hershey. “The Pageant sold a lot of seats, but it didn’t earn very much money to feed the families. They soon were starved back to work.” Though many mill workers returned to the same conditions, Hershey says, the strike did have a lasting effect on history. “The four-loom system was held back, wages stayed the
Uncle Sant Pecchio, 97, from Elmwood Park, NJ, worked at his uncles’ silk factory for two summers when he was a teenager.
same, and some jobs were saved. And it helped win reform in the American workforce including an eight-hour work day, minimum wage standards, and child labor laws …” Through the decades, Paterson’s silk industry gradually declined as the bulk of business shifted to Scranton, Pennsylvania, where factory owners were able to pay lower wages to local workers—often the wives and children of coalminers— and didn’t have to contend with prideful immigrants’ demands. Over the years, Paterson’s cultural identity has changed. The streets today are filled with shops that reflect recent waves of immigrants from the Middle East, South America, and Central America. Little trace of the city’s Italian history remains. Over the years the descendants of the Italian silk workers ITALIAN AMERICA
have moved outside the city, though Hershey says many still come in to shop at Carrado’s Italian Market or the local farmers’ market. “They buy grapes for making wine and tomatoes for making sauce,” she says. “And they still visit St. Michael’s Church, the parish of many Italian Americans.”
REMAINS OF A LEGACY Nobody in my family recalls exactly when the De Negri Brothers’ Factory shut its doors. Both Joe and Uncle Sant suspect it was after World War II, during which it became impossible to import silk thread from Japan and the factory switched to making nylon parachutes for the war effort. Over the years, stories of the factory have been traded across generations like colorful legends. One cousin keeps a precious swath of De Negri silk in her closet. Another says she used to scrub pots with leftover metallic thread from the looms. Joe recalls for many years having a wardrobe full of silk ties, “enough to last a lifetime.”
After years of listening to stories, I longed to see physical proof of the factory’s existence. One day in 2018, during a visit to my grandmother’s house in Hawthorne, I suggested going for a family drive to search for it. Uncle Sant, Joe, and I piled into my Uncle Ralph’s Toyota, and within minutes were driving up and down the streets of Paterson. We weren’t sure of the exact address, though Uncle Sant thought it was on East 24th Street. The car spun past 21st, 22nd,and 23rd streets and … HONK! Uncle Ralph slammed on the brakes, earning a glare from the driver behind us. But here we were at 24th Street. We turned and drove slowly, surveying the row of brick buildings. “I don’t see it. It must be gone,” Cousin Joe said, shaking his head. But in the front seat Uncle Sant smiled, his dark eyes sparkling. “I think we’re getting close,” he said calmly. Then, a moment later, “Yep,
Three unknown workers—the only existing photo taken at the De Negri Brothers’ Factory.
there it is! Down on the right.” He gestured to a single-story brick building. We parked the car and stepped out onto the sidewalk to survey the object of so many family stories. Here was where my great-grandmother and her brothers had once stood near powerful looms laboring at their livelihood, our own family’s tie to Silk City. Over the front door, a blue awning read Touch of Class Fine Finishing. On the door hung a sign: Open by Appointment. The only hint at the building’s former life as a factory was a row of nine high narrow windows stretching the length of the street. Uncle Sant stared up at them. “They’ve been bricked in at the top, but it’s the same as ever,” he said, grinning. “Kind of makes you jump, seeing it again after all these years.”
Artist Kathy Cuneo’s rendition of the De Negri Brothers’ Factory in Paterson, New Jersey, as it looked in the 1920s when it opened. ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 23
Kristin D’Agostino (k.dagostino@gmail. com) is a writer, teacher, and photographer based in Burlington, Vermont. She is forever grateful to her grandmother who sparked her love for Italian culture and planted the desire to explore her family roots. ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 23
MANGIA!
Fresh Summer Tomato Spaghetti
Pasta with Lemon Spinach and Chick Peas
Ingredients
Ingredients
1 lb Colavita Bucatini or Spaghetti
Colavita Extra Virgin Olive Oil
¼ cup Colavita Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes, divided
Fresh Summer Tomato Spaghetti
8 cups (about 2 ½ lbs) cherry tomatoes, half of them cut in half
Pasta with Lemon Spinach and Chick Peas
1 tsp finely grated lemon zest
1 bunch of basil leaves
12 oz Colavita Gemelli pasta
2 tsp sea salt
2 bunches flat-leaf spinach, trimmed, large leaves torn in half (about 8 cups), divided
Ricotta cheese Colavita Balsamic Glaze
1 tbsp (or more) fresh lemon juice
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. When it comes to a boil, salt generously. Add the pasta and cook according to package directions.
1 can chick peas, rinsed and drained
1 tbsp (or more) thinly sliced preserved lemon peel (opt) Grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
• Before you drain the cooked pasta, remove a cup of the pasta water and set it aside.
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• While the water is heating, begin cutting the tomatoes and making the sauce.
• Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water, stirring occasionally, until al dente (about 5 minutes for fresh pasta). Drain and reserve 1 cup cooking water.
• Heat the Colavita olive oil in a large pan over mediumhigh heat. • Add the garlic and let it cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and let them cook, stirring occasionally, until the whole cherry tomatoes begin to burst, about 5 minutes. • Stir in the basil and sea salt. • When the pasta is cooked and drained, add it to the skillet with the tomatoes. • Add a splash of the reserved pasta water, only if your sauce seems dry. • Serve the pasta with scoops of fresh ricotta cheese on top and a generous drizzle of Colavita Balsamic Glaze.
• Heat 2 tbsp Colavita olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes; cook, stirring often, until fragrant, about 1 minute. • Add 1 bunch spinach; cook, tossing, until wilted, about 1 minute. • Add pasta to skillet and toss to coat. Add lemon juice, preserved lemon peel, and remaining ½ tsp red pepper flakes and toss to combine; season with salt, pepper, and more lemon juice and preserved lemon peel, if desired. • Add remaining spinach and mix in chick peas. Add a little of the reserved pasta water and toss until slightly wilted, about 1 minute. • Garnish with lemon zest, Parmigiano Reggiano cheese and serve.
If you like these recipes, find more at http://www.colavitarecipes.com and join us every Tuesday and Thursday at 3pm EST on Facebook <https://www.facebook.com/ColavitaUSA> and Instagram <https://instagram.com/ColavitaUSA> for Colavita Cooking Live—our live cooking show where we help you create delicious meals using our products.
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ITALIAN AMERICA
SPEAKERS BUREAU
LEARN MORE ABOUT YOUR CULTURE & HISTORY
Sons & Daughters of Italy Speakers Bureau Need a speaker for your club meeting or a special event? Contact these experts directly. Some may require travel expenses and/or honorariums. For more speakers see: www.osia.org at “Culture & History.” To apply as a speaker, contact Miles Fisher at mfisher@osia.org
Don’t forget:You can host speakers over Zoom! • ILLINOIS Author and Historian Major Peter L. Belmonte (U.S. Air Force, ret.) speaks about Italian Americans in the U.S. military from the Civil War through World War II, specializing in World War I and the Old West. He has authored 11 books on such topics and was recently featured as an on-camera consultant for a Netflix series about soldiers who received the Medal of Honor (speaking on Vito Bertoldo, a soldier from Illinois who fought World War II and received the Medal of Honor). Book signing and presentation. Contact: (618) 803-1889 Email: Belmontep@att. net Website: https://doughboypublishing.weebly.com Will also travel to: Areas surrounding St. Louis, Chicago, Milwaukee, and Cincinnati • NEW JERSEY Cavaliere Dr. Gilda Battaglia Rorro speaks about her memoir—Gilda, Promise Me—which focuses on her Italian-American upbringing and has a special introduction written by Supreme Court Justice Samuel A. Alito, Jr. She highlights themes such as women’s issues, civil rights, and the significance of learning Italian. She has served as Honorary Vice Consul for Italy in Trenton. Book signing and presentation. Contact: (609) 587-7000 Email: honvconsul4italy@verizon.net
Will also travel to: Philadelphia and New York City • PENNSYLVANIA Retired Philadelphia teacher Ben Lariccia speaks about Italian immigration in the 1870s, early Italian immigrants in Ohio’s coal mines, and sheepherding in the Mezzogiorno. He is a seasoned writer with La Gazzetta Italiana newspaper and coauthored Coal War in the Mahoning Valley: The Origin of Greater Youngstown’s Italians. Book signing. Contact: 267-2592304 Email: blaricci@mac.com Website: http://immigrationfromcapracotta.com
ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 25
• CANADA (ONTARIO) Professor of Creative Writing and Author Maria Coletta McLean speaks about the immigrant experience and how the daughter of parents with limited education became an English professor and published author. She has published two works of nonfiction: My Father Came From Italy, which is about her first trip to Italy with her 83-year-old father; and Summers in Supino, which is about buying a house in her father’s village and becoming part of the people. She was awarded the Queen’s Golden Jubilee Medal for her contribution to the Canadian literary landscape. Book signing. Contact: (647) 969-7813 Email: maria.colettamclean@gmail.com
Will also travel to: Northeast and North Midwest United States • MONACO Author and Grand Prior Magistral of Knights Templar Domizio Cipriani speaks about his recent novel, Templars and Rosicrucians: The Inner and the Secret Part of the Templar Order. Contact: +33 669641969 Email: templiersmonaco@yahoo.fr Website: www.knighttemplar.net • UNITED KINGDOM Author Peter Crawley speaks about Sicily (Lipari, Messina), Corsica, London, and novel writing—including historic research and recording oral history. He recently published Constant Tides, a novel set in Sicily. His novel, Mazzeri: Love and Death in Light and Shadow, which is set in Corsica, was nominated for the American Library in Paris Book Award. Book signing. Contact: +44 7831423200 Email: petercrawleybooks@gmail.com Website: www.peter-crawley.com Will also travel to: United States, Europe, and Beyond
ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 25
OSDIA NATION
OSDIA LODGES AT WORK
NEW YORK The Cellini Lodge #2206 in New Hyde Park kicked into overdrive when COVID-19 hit. With 383 members, the third largest lodge in New York went to work in support of healthcare workers in their area. In the beginning of May, they sent food to four local hospitals in a four-day span, delivering lunch to NYU Winthrop Hospital and St. Francis Hospital, The Heart Center and delivering dinner to North Shore University Hospital and Long Island Jewish Medical Center. The staffs from all four hospitals were so thankful that they returned the lodge’s generosity with several letters of appreciation. The lodge has also continued to hold its monthly general meetings and officers’ meetings via Zoom. During the officers’ meeting at the end of May, they received information about the local food pantries who were in need of food. Once again, the lodge went into overdrive, sending out an email blast and requesting that members drop off food at their lodge office on June 2. In just two hours, lodge members had donated enough food to fill three local food pantries. The lodge delivered the food to the Notre Dame Church and Church of
Cellini lodge members with NYU Winthrop Hospital staff. SUMMER 2020
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Cellini lodge members delivering food to Long Island Jewish Medical Center.
CONNECTICUT In response to COVID-19 relief efforts, the Amerigo Vespucci Lodge #160 in Danbury presented a $1,000 check to Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton to supply those in need of essential groceries. The mayor accepted the check on behalf of the Hillside Food Outreach, which delivers these groceries to families who are not able to access local pantries.
the Holy Spirit in New Hyde Park. They also contacted St. Brigid’s Catholic Church in Westbury, who came to the lodge’s office to pick up donated food. “I am so proud of our lodge,” said Lodge President Anthony Calabro. “Whenever I ask the members to step up, they do it.
Cellini lodge members with Long Island Jewish Medical Center staff. Not to be outdone, the lodge’s scholarship committee also held Zoom meetings in May to make sure they awarded the lodge’s annual scholarships in spite of the pandemic. After the meetings, the lodge presented scholarships to three members’ children and two members’ grandchildren, all of whom were graduating high school. The lodge also presented one graduate scholarship. In addition to this, the lodge granted scholarships to seven neighboring high schools. This year, a total of $15,000 in scholarships were given out by the Cellini Lodge.
Lodge President Bruno Tropeano (right) presents Mayor Mark Boughton with the donation from the Amerigo Vespucci Lodge #160.
Have you or your lodge done something remarkable that makes a difference to your community or promotes our heritage and Italian studies? If so, send details including your lodge’s name/ number, a brief write-up, and digital photos of 300 dpi to Editor Miles Fisher at mfisher@osia.org
ITALIAN AMERICA
MAKING A DIFFERENCE
PENNSYLVANIA Because in-person meetings have not been possible, the Central Pennsylvania Lodge #2651 in Mechanicsburg missed its lodge family too much and decided to do something about it. On May 27, the Lodge used Zoom to hold their monthly meeting. Thirty-nine attendees were present, including State Lodge of Pennsylvania President Joseph Marino. Prior to this meeting, the lodge had already been using Zoom to host their weekly Italian language lessons. The Lodge looks forward to continue using this technology in the future to benefit, for example, older members who would like to participate, but due to weather or other circumstances cannot drive to meetings. Although virtual, their Zoom meeting was just like any other monthly meeting, beginning with prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, and a discussion of financials. They memorialized the recent passing of
longtime OSDIA member, William R. Montone. Lodge member Bernie Costanza gave a fascinating presentation on the story of two Italian men who immigrated to Pennsylvania more than 100 years ago. They created what would ultimately become the Planters Peanut Company. Another highlight of the meeting was the announcement of the recipient of the 2020 Central PA Lodge Annual Scholarship and the John Kendrick Memorial scholarship, both of which were awarded to Cristina Marcellus of Trinity High School in Camp Hill. Cristina will be attending Misericordia University in Dallas, Pennsylvania, and majoring in English Education. She has participated in the lodge’s activities ever since she was a toddler—attending La Befana parties, picnics, bocce events, and Italian language classes.
FLORIDA Last April, the Perry Como Lodge #2876 in Tequesta organized a food giveaway to help those in need. The giveaway was put together with the help of the Mayor of Tequesta, the Tequesta Fire-Rescue, and the American Legion along with many volunteers and six restaurants. More than 700 meals were given out in total, due in large part to the lodge’s $1,000 donation toward these efforts. “It’s great to have such wonderful people always willing to go the extra mile to help out when needed,” said Lodge President Jo Demerac.
Bravo e buona fortuna, Cristina!
(L. to R.) Mayor of Tequesta Abby Brennan, Lodge President Jo Demerac, Then-Commander John Baker of the American Legion, and Jack Demerac.
Members of the Central Pennsylvania Lodge at their weekly Italian language lesson via Zoom.
ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 27
The tents in line, where the restaurants delivered their food.
ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 27
BY MILES RYAN FISHER
Every other Sunday, ten-year-old Adam Forno would go for a car ride with his parents and his little sister to his grandparents’ house in Geneva, a small town in Upstate New York. There, his Neapolitan grandmother, Esther Raimondi (née Visco), would already be in the kitchen preparing the Sunday meal, letting the tomato sauce simmer, its fragrance permeating the house. Meanwhile, Adam would be outside on the side porch, before an altar he’d built of cardboard and pretending to say Mass. He practiced and practiced until it came time for him to
say the prayer before the Sunday meal. Even then, young Adam knew he wanted to live a life of priestly service. When he turned 18 years old, Adam entered a junior college seminary to determine what kind of service he’d want to do—whether that entailed something more contemplative as the life of a monk or something reflective of a more moderate path. Before graduating from Syracuse University, he spent several months with the Benedictine monks of Mt. Saviour in Elmira, New York. There, it became apparent that the monk’s life was too extreme a path. So after graduating from Syracuse University, he traveled to Austin, Texas, where he spent a year as a youth minister before he entered the Discalced Carmelite Friars. There, he was introduced to their middle path of service and prayer.
Father Forno’s grandparents, Esther and Adolf Raimondi, who hosted Sunday meals while he was growing up in Upstate New York. SUMMER 2020
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After three years of discernment, he left the friars and returned to Upstate New York, serving developmentally disabled adults in the Albany area for four years. It was then that he realized he wouldn’t feel at peace unless he pursued the priesthood one more time. So he sought acceptances by the Diocese of Albany and was accepted and enrolled into a Masters of Divinity program at Catholic University of
America in Washington, D.C. Once again, Adam left his life behind to discern the path to the priesthood. At 32 years old, he traveled to the nation’s capital to determine this once and for all. The moment he walked into his seminary dorm room, laid his suitcase on the bed, and began unpacking, a feeling of panic triggered inside him. “I’m unpacking, and all of a sudden, I think, ‘What am I doing? Do I really want to do this?’” Adam reflects. “I became really consumed by doubt and began to panic. I was ready to pack the car up, turn around, and drive seven hours back to Albany. ” At that moment, a diminutive, fresh out-of-college boy came bouncing down the hallway and into Adam’s room. His name was Brian Brown. Everything about him emitted exuberance—a love for life and a love for this path. He was certain that the priesthood was his destiny, and yet he confided in Adam that he, too, was intimidated by the commitment. In fact, he told Adam, he was even a little frightened. It was this moment of shared vulnerability that convinced Adam to stay. From that day forward, he and Brian began to bond with their other 22 ITALIAN AMERICA
classmates during a time that marked great spiritual, psychological, and theological growth. Upon embarking on this journey, a Sister in charge of discernment said to Adam, “Put out your hands.” Adam did as he was told and held out his hands. “Celibacy is like a glove,” she told him and touched his one hand. “Priesthood is like another glove,” she said and touched his other hand. “And we’re going to see how those gloves fit in the next couple of years.” That following summer, the group of seminarians went on their first annual retreat. The drive north took them to a Lake George camp in the Adirondacks. The following day, they traveled further north to Pharaoh Lake in order to “experience God in nature.” After arriving, they split into two groups and were on opposite sides of the frigid lake. That’s when Adam’s group heard what sounded like “a bear howling.” Then the howling grew clearer. It was that of human screams.
Thoughts raced through Adam’s mind as he and his group ran around the lake to where the sound was reverberating. When they arrived, they saw Mike—a strong, athletic classmate of theirs—uncontrollably shaken and in tears. He was pointing to the water, saying Brian. Brian. Brian Brown was gone. Divers later recovered Brian’s body 25 feet off shore, his slight frame having likely succumbed to hypothermia before being swept under and away. Adam became overwhelmed with a raw emotion that tested his very faith in God. He wondered how he could serve a God that would take away someone so loved, someone so committed to serving God’s people. The very one who persuaded Adam to continue alongside him on the path to priesthood. On the ride back to Albany, Adam sat in the passenger’s seat and cried the whole way down I-87. He spent two months in Albany before returning to the seminary in D.C. What he
“Oh dear God, what is it?”
The late Brian Brown, Father Forno’s dear friend and only classmate from Albany. returned to was a community, one that was growing closer than ever before. They grieved as one. They bonded as one. They rose as one. “It was the community that held us together,” Adam said. It was through this tragedy and rising up as one that Adam could discern his future. He was now certain, as certain as Brian had been, that the gloves fit. He would make his promises two years later as a priest of the Diocese of Albany. Upon completion of his pastoral year, and in light of his two years of study as a Carmelite, he was ordained a deacon that May. Because his father was terminally ill, he was ordained a priest just three months later on August 15, 1987. His ordination was celebrated before the eyes of his loved ones—including his 100-year-old paternal grandmother from central Sicily, Maria Grazia Forno.
The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception that serves Catholic University in Washington, D.C. The shrine is the largest Roman Catholic church in in North America. (Victoria Lipov) ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 29
Throughout his years in the priesthood, Father Forno served parishes in the Capital Region of Albany, spending the majority of his ministry in the city of Rensselaer at the parishes of ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 29
A Message from the National Chaplain From June to December it is Hurricane Season in Florida, where I reside. During this time, we live, as do other vulnerable states, with the potential threat of having our lives upended.
The Altar of the Dead that Father Forno keeps in his bedroom. St. John the Evangelist and St. Joseph and as a hospice chaplain. He also served as Chaplain to the Rensselaer Police and Fire Departments for two decades while serving on many boards in the area as well as the Bethlehem University Foundation Board in Washington, D.C. Meanwhile, he rose through the ranks of the Order Sons and Daughters of Italy in America, serving as Chaplain to the Roma Intangible Lodge #215 in Albany before serving as Chaplain to the Grand Lodge of New York. In 2009, Father Forno became the Order’s National Chaplain, a two-year position that has lasted 12 years, well into his retirement. “It’s a sense of community,” Father Forno said about the Order. “And in community is where we find reconnection and healing, grace, hope and new life.” For Father Forno, such words can travel back in time. They can take him back to the community in Washington that helped him discern his calling to the priesthood—the very community that grew out of one tragic death. And so it remains with him to this day. Every morning when he opens his eyes, every night before he closes them, he sets them upon an altar of the dead that he has arranged in his bedroom. Several framed photographs rest upon the altar, among them one of Brian Brown. Taped behind the photograph is a little cross that Brian’s mother had given Father Forno back before he’d put on the gloves of priesthood. Back when Father was still simply known as Adam. Miles Ryan Fisher (mfisher@osia.org) is the Editor-in-Chief of Italian America magazine.
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Clearly COVID-19 recently upended the world as we collectively endured a “change” that turned our thinking inside out and upside down like a Born Raymond Category Five hurricane. In Greek Forno, Father Forno this change is called “metanoia.” It adopted the relitranslates to revolutionizing our way gious name “Adam” of thinking, acting, and being. when it was given to him by the In this horrific pandemic we endured the necessary lock-downs, social dis- Carmelite Friars. tancing, and economic consequences that we could have never imagined before this havoc occurred. Now following the advent of the coronavirus, and its ongoing threat, our way of thinking, acting, and being must continue to change. Remember when the threat of COVID-19 first appeared how the media reported on hoarding and price gouging? Then we heard in the weeks that followed the stories of everyday heroes who were selflessly sacrificing their lives for the sake of others. Crisis brings this out of us—selfishness or selflessness.Thankfully, today multitudes of these latter folks continue to be generous, courageous, and compassionate. We rely on them for physical, emotional, psychological, and spiritual well-being. They remind us that in the process of giving what we can, and receiving what we need, we all build relationships that last. So, it appears to me that this pandemic has helped us remember and return to the reality that we are all connected to one another.We are interdependent and share the bond that makes us one family of humanity under our Creator’s providential care. As such, our responsibilities to one another transcend national, racial, economic, and ideological differences. Brothers and Sisters, during this journey through the COVID-19 pandemic we have drunk from the chalice of shared sorrows and celebrated our joys.As we continue to live with its threat, and the possibility of being upended again, we must commit to the continued call of “metanoia”—changing our way of thinking, acting, and being. It is an opportunity for people of good will, and in particular for members of our Order, to live the dream and destiny God has for each of his creating. Sempre Avanti! Father R. Adam Forno National Chaplain Order Sons & Daughters of Italy in America
ITALIAN AMERICA
FROM THE NATIONAL
WHAT NATIONAL DOES FOR YOU
From the President’s Desk
By Nancy DiFiore Quinn
“And so with the sunshine and the great burst of leaves growing on the trees, just as things grow fast in movies, I had that familiar connection that life was beginning over again with summer.” This beautiful quote by F. Scott Fitzgerald has always been a favorite of mine. I am hoping and praying that summer 2020 will be a good season for all of us and that much of what we are going through right now will be over and we can begin to move on with our lives. Our beloved Order Sons and Daughters of Italy in America has been working diligently to keep in touch with our members … and all Italian Americans. We have been holding weekly Facebook interviews with famous Italians such as Ambassador Armando Varricchio, Author Adriana Trigiani, Vocalist Giada Valenti, and several other interesting guests. Check out our Facebook page to see upcoming events.
Congratulations to the Grand Lodge of Maryland, who celebrates its 100th anniversary this summer!
We are delighted to welcome our first lodge formed in Italy. It is the Capitolo di Roma Lodge #3002, which is, of course, situated in Rome. They are a wonderful group of men and women who are looking forward to working with us on all our endeavors. We have officially canceled the plenary meeting in August, which was to be in Chicago, Illinois. I am saddened by this decision because I was looking forward to working with all our leaders from across the country. Due to the coronavirus, traveling so soon seems to be something that is questionable. The immediate issue being addressed right now is membership. Our lodges have not been able to meet for the past few months, so collecting membership dues has been challenging. Please, if you are not a member of OSDIA, consider joining us. If you are a member and have not paid your dues, please take a few minutes to do so now. Let’s make a concerted effort to work on our membership numbers and to bring new members into our organization. The Sons of Italy Foundation has completed their selection of scholarship recipients for this year, and we are so proud of the caliber of students that have entered this competition. Please take a few minutes to get to know this year’s scholarship recipients on page three of this issue. If you can believe it—with all that is going on in the world today—people are still determined to rid us of Columbus Day and our Columbus statues. The Commission for Social Justice is working diligently to contest this prejudice all around the country. Unfortunately, as Columbus Day approaches, I am afraid that things will heat up again and we must be united to fight this injustice. As I close this seasonal column, let me assure you that all of the leaders of OSDIA are doing their best to preserve our Italian heritage and increase membership to our beloved organization. We are keeping a positive outlook with the knowledge that our lives will be back to a new normal real soon. Please stay well, stay safe, and take some time to find out a little more about the Order Sons and Daughters of Italy in America.
The Grand Lodge’s first Executive Committee, which was installed in November 1920, included a woman in a leadership position.
ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 31
ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 31
THE SONS OF ITALY FOUNDATION ®
HELPING THOSE IN NEED
The Foundation Focus By Joseph Sciame, President
While we have all been persevering and doing our best as we try to return to normal, I am very happy to report to you some positive news. Although the Sons of Italy Foundation (SIF) was not able to hold its 32nd Annual National Education & Leadership Awards (NELA) Gala, we were still able to award our annual scholarships to ten standout students—some of the most promising that our heritage has to offer. Please take some time to get to know them on page 3 of this issue. In addition to awarding nearly $70,000 in scholarships during the onset of COVID-19, the SIF also donated yet another van to a military veteran through Help Our Military Heroes. As you will read in the very moving article below, this is the seventh van we have donated—a proud example of where donations to the Sons of Italy Foundation have been going.
has been doing very well. We have received thousands of donations from donors across the country who wish to support our causes—such as awarding scholarships and helping military veterans—which reflect so highly on our Italian heritage. Giving in the time of difficulty is one of the most beautiful things to see. As the SIF continues to do so at the national level and its donors continue to do so on the individual level, I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge the numerous lodges doing so at the local level. I am so proud of the stories that appear in this issue’s OSDIA Nation section, and of course, I am proud to be a member of one of those lodges! As we fight to get on the other side of what our great nation has been experiencing, I urge you to continue giving to those in need. No amount of your effort, your time, or your money is too small, as even a small amount can do wonders to raise the morale of those around you.
Speaking of donations, I am happy to report that despite these trying times, the SIF Direct Mail Program
Sons of Italy Foundation Donates Van to USArmy Veteran This year, the Sons of Italy Foundation (SIF) proudly presented another donation of $20,000 to Help Our Military Heroes (HOMH)—a non-profit organization dedicated to providing fully equipped, adaptive minivans to our country’s most severely wounded, injured, and ill service men and women who sustained their injuries while on active duty. This year’s donation marks the sixth time in seven years that the SIF has donated at least $20,000 to HOMH. The donation provided a minivan grant for USArmy Col Philip Lee Swinford (ret.), who is an Incomplete Quadriplegic suf-
USArmy Col Philip Lee Swinford (ret.) with his family and the modified van donated to him by the SIF. SUMMER 2020
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fering from Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) due to IEDs on multiple deployments. Prior to COVID-19, he was using the van for things like traveling to Medstar National Rehabilitation Hospital and going out to dinner with his wife. “If I didn’t have a modified van,” Col Swinford said, “I would be stuck at home, relying on a taxi service to get around.” HOMH was co-founded in 2009 by Laurie (née Serricchio) and Ted Hollander and Marybeth Vandergrift. They have provided 141 adaptive minivans to veterans. Seven of those have been donated by the Sons of Italy Foundation. “They don’t have to give, but they do give,” Col. Swinford said, referring to the members of the Order Sons and Daughters of Italy in America. “And that is a huge benefit for me and, more importantly, other Col Swinford with HOMH veterans like me.” Co-Founder Ted Hollander. ITALIAN AMERICA
THE COMMISSION FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE ®
FIGHTING DEFAMATION
The CSJ Perspective
tack and include contact information for the public officials who should be contacted.
I hope everyone has kept safe through these difficult times and will continue to do so as things open back up and we slowly return to normalcy. The repercussions that Italian Americans, in particular, have suffered during these times have been quite disheartening, as I’m sure you agree. The attacks launched on Columbus statues across the United States have targeted both our nation’s rich history and our ethnicity.
Make the Vandalism of Columbus Statues a Hate Crime It is time to call the vandalism of Columbus statues what it is: A hate crime against Italian Americans. With the leadership of John A. Fratta and the New York State Commission for Social Justice, we have launched a petition to make the vandalism of Columbus Statues a hate crime.
By Robert M. Ferrito, President
We will not stay silent in the face of these attacks and the injustice being ultimately done to Italian Americans! There are several ways we are mobilizing to protect and preserve our heritage, and we hope that you will join us in these efforts. Target Public Officials We are targeting public officials—from state representatives to mayors and city councils—who oversee jurisdictions where Columbus statues have been vandalized or are being threatened with removal. Putting pressure on them is of the utmost importance. We must prevent them from capitulating to those who attack and seek to destroy our heritage.
To sign the petition, visit www.change.org. Click on the magnifying glass in the top right and then type “Make vandalism of a Columbus Statue a hate crime” into the search box. This will take you to the petition that you can sign. Engage Media Outlets Because the media, for better or worse, has such an effect on public perception, we have engaged a media relations specialist to broaden our reach. Our letters and information to educate the public on the true history of Columbus will now be disseminated to a wider audience. Broadening our reach has been made possible, in part, by the donations we have received. Please consider making a donation of your own using the donation slip below. Through these means, we stand united with ItalianAmerican organizations across the country and urge you to take up the cause. We at the Commission for Social Justice are defending history and heritage as strongly as we can, but the only way we will triumph is through the collective action of all Italian Americans.
Follow us on Facebook—the Commission for Social Justice—where Call-to-Action notices will be posted. Also, please alert us if your area’s Columbus statue is under at-
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Please accept my tax-deductible donation to support the Commission for Social Justice’s mission. To donate online, visit www.osia.org/csj To donate by phone, call the National Office at (202) 547-2900
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Letters to the Editor Your account of your meeting and your proposing to a young German woman in “An Olive Tree for Evelyn” was very romantic and touching. I am sure that all Italian-American men, including myself, remember exactly how and where they proposed to the women that struck them like “il fulmine” (the lightning bolt) and that they married, but I am also sure that most of them, again including me, do not have such a spectacular story like yours. Your article about the love of your life tied in very nicely with “The Last Word” in which you wrote about the last three generations in your family and your hoped-for next three generations. In that regard, I wish that your dream will come true! Joseph Scafetta Jr. Past State President, Grand Lodge of Virginia Italian Heritage Lodge #2517 Fairfax, Virginia
I loved your article in the magazine this quarter.We just were in Tropea and Calabria, as my ancestors are from San Donato di Ninea, and we had so much fun that we are going back to Tropea as soon as we can. Fran Giannuzzi President, Triangle Sons of Italy Lodge #2817 Raleigh, North Carolina I loved the story about Marilyn’s “Nonna.” There are so many things that I can associate with; Cooking in a small kitchen, dinner on Sunday’s, and getting your cheeks pinched by Nonno. I would get “The Wooden Spoon” whenever I tasted the sauce on the back burner of the stove. Marilyn’s Nonna was raised in Piacenza which is the same town my Father-in-law (Insani) came from. Nonna’s half-sister, Jennie, loved to talk about “Major Bevilaqua.” My mother, Gemma Marangoni Valerio, was a first cousin to Major Bevilaqua. Tony Valerio
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Italian America Magazine is produced by the national headquarters of the Order Sons & Daughters of Italy in America®, 219 E Street NE, Washington, DC 20002. Tel: 202/547-2900. Email: nationaloffice@osia.org Chief Operating Officer Joseph J. DiTrapani Editor-in-Chief Miles Ryan Fisher Director of Finance Adam Jacobs Program Director Emily Knoche Managing Director Justin Smith Italian America® is the official publication of the Order Sons & Daughters of Italy in America® (OSDIA), the largest and longest-established organization of American men and women of Italian heritage. Italian America provides timely information about OSDIA, while reporting on individuals, institutions, issues, and events of current or historical significance in the Italian-American community nationwide. Italian America (ISSN: 1089-5043, USPS: 015-735) is published quarterly in the winter, spring, summer and fall by OSDIA, 219 E Street NE, Washington, DC 20002. Periodicals postage paid at Washington, D.C., and at additional mailing offices. ©2015 Order Sons & Daughters of Italy in America. All rights reserved. Reproduction by any method without permission of the editor is prohibited. Statements of fact and opinion are the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily imply an opinion on the part of the officers, employees, or members of OSDIA. Mention of a product or service in advertisements or text does not mean that it has been tested, approved or endorsed by OSDIA, the Commission for Social Justice, or the Sons of Italy Foundation. Italian America accepts query letters and letters to the editor. Please do not send unsolicited manuscripts. Italian America assumes no responsibility for unsolicited materials. Annual subscriptions are $20, which are included in dues for OSDIA members. Single copies are $4.95 each.OSDIA MEMBERS: Please send address changes to your local lodge. Do not contact the OSDIA National Office. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Italian America, 219 E Street NE, Washington, DC 20002. Subscriptions are available through the OSDIA National Office, 219 E Street, NE, Washington, DC 20002. OSDIA membership information is available at (800) 552-OSDIA or at www. OSDIA.org. Archives are maintained at the Immigration History Research Center, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, Minn. Printing by Printing Solutions Inc., Sterling, Va. To advertise: Contact ItalianAmerica@osia.org (202) 547-2900. Also see www.osia.org for advertising rates, specs, demographics, etc. ITALIAN SUMMERAMERICA 2020 35
BY MILES RYAN FISHER EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, ITALIAN AMERICA MAGAZINE
When I walked into the reception after my grandfather’s funeral, I saw an old friend of his that I hadn’t seen in perhaps two decades: Benny Campagnolo. He was in his early 90s, and I was told that his mind was to the point where he wasn’t always lucid. I remembered Benny from the times my grandparents would take me to his restaurant—Roma Pizzeria—for dinner when I was young. But of course, their story went back much further than that, long before I was born. Benny had emigrated from Italy in his twenties during the post-World War II years and started as a dishwasher at my grandfather’s restaurant, the Lehigh Valley House. As my grandfather did with all the Italian immigrants he hired, he helped Benny work his way up. He even eventually helped Benny start his own restaurant, the very one my grandparents always took me to. I introduced myself to Benny, and it wasn’t clear that he remembered me. Perhaps he remembered of me, that I was Joe and Clara Daino’s grandson. He began talking to me, his Italian accent still so strong that I had to listen intently to understand him. As I did, I realized he was telling me something about my grandfather that I didn’t know—something that nobody in my whole family knew. In the middle of the day, Benny said, my grandfather would steal him away from work and take him to the local airfield, where he and my grandfather would climb into a plane. Apparently, my grandfather missed flying the P-47s he’d flown during World War II so much that he would sneak off during the workday to take to the air—and made Benny accompany him. “I was so scared!” Benny exclaimed. After all, he’d traveled from Italy by boat and had never before been on a plane. “He was an older brother to me,” Benny said. Then he started to cry. The older biological brother he once had, he told me, had died in the war. I always knew that my grandfather had taken his fellow paesani under his wing. It was something that many Italians did for those who immigrated after they did. What I hadn’t known was that, with Benny, my grandfather assumed the role of the older brother that Benny had lost. Yet what struck me more than this revelation was the image of my grandfather slipping off to the airfield with Benny, flying high above the town of Ithaca without my grandmother ever finding out. It was this— a hidden memory preserved by an aging mind—that was the greatest comfort someone could have given me on the day my grandfather was laid to rest.
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PIACERE! PLEASED TO MEET YOU, CINDY
Cindy Williams Cindy Williams is an actress best known for her role as Shirley Feeney on the television sitcom Laverne & Shirley, which ran from 1976 to 1982. The show, which was derived from characters she and her co-star Penny Marshall played on Happy Days, was one of the most watched shows on television during its era. In addition to her television work, Cindy starred in numerous movies, including George Lucas’s American Graffiti (1973), for which she earned a BAFTA nomination as Best Supporting Actress, and Francis Ford Coppola’s The Conversation (1974). In 2015, Cindy published her memoir, Shirley I Jest. Cindy is an honorary member of the Order Sons & Daughters of Italy in America’s Grand Lodge of California. Tell us about your Italian background. My grandparents, Ernesto Bellini and Anna Messina Bellini, left Catania, Sicily, in 1908 and immigrated to America through Ellis Island. They lived in an apartment on 81st Street in Manhattan, where my mother, Frances, was born in 1910. My grandmother’s younger brother, Joe Messina, joined them that same year but later went on to Dallas, Texas, where many of the Messina family had settled and established a shoe shop. My grandfather died in New York and my grandmother and mother moved to Dallas and joined the rest of the Messina family. My cousin, Mario Messina, fought in World War II and was taken prisoner by the Germans. While in prison, he was starved and said he dreamed of nothing but food. When he was released, he went back to Dallas and introduced Italian food to the community by opening the famously popular Il Sorrento Restaurant. Describe how your mom, Francesca, influenced you when you were young. My mother had a powerful work ethic. I can’t remember a time when she didn’t have a job. For many years, she worked as a waitress in a high-end restaurant in Dallas called Town and Country. She would work all day and SUMMER 2020
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then come home and cook the most fabulous food. She could cook anything from perfectly fried okra to an incredible meat sauce that was hearty or delicate, depending on her mood. I thankfully acquired her work ethic, but unfortunately not so much her talent for cooking. How did you and your Laverne & Shirley counterpart, Penny Marshall, connect over your shared Italian heritage? Penny’s Marshall’s true Italian name was Masciarelli. Her family came from Abruzzi, Italy. One way to describe how Penny and I connected with our Italian heritage would be “operatic.” We would arrive on the set of “Laverne and Shirley” at 10 a.m., start screaming at each other over lines we disagreed with, perhaps slam a door or two … and by noon turn to each other and ask, “Whadaya wanna eat for lunch?” Tell us about the importance of faith. We all need to have the kind of faith that Indiana Jones had when he held The Chalice of Christ and stepped out into the abyss—the faith that God will always hold the stone under our feet. When all is said and done, faith is what we all can cleave to. It’s God’s way of showing us he is present and powerful and here for us. I always say to my children, “Everything is going to be alright.” Those are not just words, it’s the promise of God. If you were a guest on an Italian cooking show, what meal would you teach us to cook and how did you originally learn it? My entire family had a talent for cooking. Unfortunately, my mother and grandmother did not “teach” me to cook. Not only that, they kept the family recipes in their heads, never writing them down. I can make great meatballs and sauce which I learned through some sort of mystical Italian osmosis by watching them cook. I did learn to make a beautiful Chicken Piccata from my friend, Italian chef Nick Grippo. I can demonstrate how to prepare it, but don’t ask me for the recipe. I never wrote it down. I think Mama would approve.
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