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Wins OSDIA Slogan Contest! Join OSDIA on YouTube!
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In a recent special OSDIA Facebook Live episode, the Order Sons and Daughters of Italy in America (OSDIA) revealed “Italian Roots; American Branches” as the winning slogan in a contest that saw more than 300 entries. Of those entries, sixteen were chosen to be represented in a bracket-style tournament.
More than 3,000 votes were cast in the tournament as “Italian Roots; American Branches” emerged the victor to become OSDIA’s slogan. The slogan was submitted by Clara Martone of Annapolis, Maryland, who is a proud member of the Annapolis Lodge #2225. She works as an attorney, and her father was also a proud member of OSDIA. For winning the contest, Clara received a check for $200.
The contest’s runner-up—“American Made from Italian Roots”—was submitted by Carmen Paternoster, a proud member of the Columbus Forum Lodge #1492 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She is a first-generation American and a school teacher who teaches English to immigrant children.
T-shirts and polo shirts bearing OSDIA’s new slogan have been specially designed by award-winning graphic artist Anthony Massa. The shirts are available online in black, white, and royal blue with a choice of two designs.
Visit www.osia.org or https://the-tsm-shop.printavo. com/merch/osd/ to get yours today!
The “Order Sons and Daughters of Italy in America” YouTube channel is growing like never before! Videos showcase various aspects of Italian culture as well as the good work of the Sons of Italy Foundation. From U.S. military veteran van recipients through Help Our Military Heroes, speeches at past National Education & Leadership Awards Gala from honorees like Dr. Anthony Fauci, past OSDIA Facebook Live Interviews, cooking demonstrations, and more, there is a reason for anyone with (and without!) Italian heritage to follow OSDIA’s YouTube channel.
In order to follow it, simply go on www.youtube.com and search “Order Sons and Daughters of Italy in America.” The channel will be listed at the top, and all you have to do is click on the “Subscribe” button on the right side.
Have You Checked Out Your OSDIA Member Benefits?
The Order Sons and Daughters of Italy in America offers its members a range of special discounts on Italian products, genealogy research, travel, healthcare, specialty items, and other services.
To view your Member Benefits, log on to www.osia.org and click on “Member Benefits” listed on the left.
If you are a Lodge Member and do not have a Username/Password, please contact your Grand Lodge or Subordinate Lodge about setting one up. If you are an At-Large Member and do not have a Username/Password, please contact NationalOffice@osia.org about setting one up.
BY MILES RYAN FISHER
On a Friday night, 23-year-old Phil Mastroianni arrived home from his accounting job to find his Uncle Joe sitting at the kitchen table. Phil took out a bottle of his newly homemade limoncello and poured his uncle a glass. His uncle took a sip, then looked up.
“This is the best limoncello I’ve ever had,” he said, straight-faced. “This is what you should be doing.”
Initially, Phil didn’t know what to make of his uncle’s reaction. Producing limoncello was what he should be doing … for a living?
“Oh come on,” Phil said, responding as if Uncle Joe was putting him on.
“No, I’m serious,” Uncle Joe said.
This ignited a spark in Phil. After all, his uncles were part of the reason he’d started to make limoncello to begin with. In the past, he’d attempted to impress them with homemade wine, but whenever he tried sharing a bottle with them, they’d simply slide it aside and pour another glass of their own homemade wine, certain that it was superior. None of his uncles, however, had ventured to make limoncello. This, Phil decided, was a way he could best them.
Instead, he was left lying in bed that night, replaying Uncle Joe’s reaction in his mind. “I couldn’t sleep,” Phil said. “I just kept thinking about all the reasons he was right.”
Of course, the journey didn’t originate simply with a bottle of homemade limoncello and a desire to one-up his uncles. Rather, it began in 2003 when Phil was a 20-year-old college kid taking his first trip to Platania, a small hilltop town in Calabria where his grandparents were born. It was the place where his grandmother, Laura, had emigrated from as a young girl and where his grandfather, Philip, had emigrated from as a young man—with the help of Laura’s father, who turned out to be his future father-inlaw. That’s how his grandparents ended up living on the same street—High Street—in Newton, Massachusetts. Philip worked as a landscaper for his future father-in-law and also pulled night shifts at a General Motors car factory. It was in Calabria in 2003 that Phil explored the town
of his roots and began to understand where so many of his family traditions originated.
“All of my extended family observed the same traditions, especially related to food, that we did in Newton, Massachusetts,” he said. “And all of a sudden it connected a dot—this is why we do these things. We learned them right here. From that moment on, I decided not to sit on the sidelines.” With that spirit, Phil left Italy determined to learn more about his family’s roots and further immerse himself in Italian culture.
It was this that led him on several return trips to Italy, back to the small hilltop town in Calabria. And it was on one of these trips that his Cousin Angelina took out a bottle of limoncello made with lemons that grew on her own property. While Phil didn’t return to the United States with a limoncello recipe in hand, what he did bring back was a desire to create his own. After his first attempt—and after his uncle’s reaction to it—he began experimenting even more, creating his own style with one objective in mind: to bring his homemade limoncello to the world. With that, he settled on the name Fabrizia, the name of a Calabrian town an hour away from Platania.
The beginnings of Fabrizia were so humble they started in a garage— Phil’s parents’ garage, to be exact. Inside that garage, friends and family members came together to peel thousands of lemons. Meanwhile, Phil’s brother, Nick, who is four years his junior, joined the cause even though he was busy attending the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. Together, they searched for and rented out space where they could make the limoncello and also obtained all the licenses they needed for commercial production.
Then they made their very first large-scale batch: 175 gallons of limoncello.
The batch took four months to sell, as Phil continued working his accounting job by day and Nick continued studying at the university three hours away. Phil made the product at night, and Nick drove home on weekends with some friends who helped him bottle it, labeling every bottle one at a time.
“It was my dream,” Phil said, “and then somewhere along the way, Nick made it his. Now, it’s our dream.”
As the years went by, they began to sell the batches in shorter amounts of time. They got it down to two months. Then one month.
That’s when Phil decided to take the leap from a world of safety nets to a world of no guarantees. He left his stable job as a certified public accountant to pursue what had developed into his passion. And, like his grandfather, he worked as a landscaper to earn what he could part time while committing himself to Fabrizia full time.
The start was a struggle. Though Phil felt confident that he had a firstrate product, he also found that stores were not particularly interested in limoncello, even if it was offered at a competitive price.
“Limoncello, while loved by many, is not necessarily keeping the lights on at your local liquor store,” he remarked.
Still, he managed to get his bottles into New Hampshire’s state-run
Nick (left) and Phil Mastroianni in their Fabrizia factory in Newton, Massachusetts.
The Mastroianni Family gathers for the very first official Fabrizia Limoncello taste testing.
stores, which had the requirement that new products needed to sell 3,000 bottles in their first six months in order to remain on the shelves.
Then came a break of fortune in the form of a feature story.
It ran on the cover page of New Hampshire’s Eagle Tribune. The story featured a front-page picture of Phil’s ten-year-old cousin Vinny peeling lemons in his parents’ garage. From there, sales in New Hampshire took off, and Fabrizia was on the shelf to stay.
From there, the company began to diversify its product, concocting other forms of limoncello, beginning with blood orange limoncello. Then there was the question of what to do with all the leftover lemons that had been stripped of their zest by the lemonpeeling machine that Phil and Nick had lovingly dubbed “Giuseppe,” after their Uncle Joe.
The lemons themselves hail from Sicily, the top lemon-producing re“Italian Margarita,” a mixture of lemons, limoncello, and tequila. It was a drink that Phil and Nick’s younger sister, Jenna, had concocted for them to enjoy in the backyard. In addition to this, they developed a variety of other canned beverages that utilized the leftover lemons.
Like the lemons that grew from the soil of Sicily, Fabrizia was flourishing. They were able to purchase the property they’d rented at the very beginning. They even managed to expand by purchasing the neighbor’s unit as well.
Then the pandemic struck. Just after they had imported $80,000 worth of lemons in preparation for the spring and their 2020 campaign, the pandemic set upon them, and
gion in Italy. They grow out of Mount Etna’s rich volcanic soil on the east coast of the island. Every winter, Fabrizia imports approximately 200,000 lemons to satisfy its total limoncello production.
With that amount of leftover lemons, they began making their own
Peeling lemons in the Mastroianni family garage.
with that, came canceled orders, including one for March from a big distributor. Initially, Phil resigned himself and Fabrizia to a grave fate.
After several sleepless nights, struggling in a “sink or swim” situation, Phil and Fabrizia were tossed a life preserver in the form of hand sanitizer. With a sudden need for sanitizer, the FDA was allowing distilleries to produce it. So Fabrizia pivoted and immediately began producing lemon-scented hand sanitizer in order to survive. And since they were offered this opportunity to survive, Fabrizia felt the obligation to give back. They did so by donating over 20,000 bottles of hand sanitizer to first responders.
With this altered approach, Fabrizia continued to diversify, opening a limoncello bakery to produce cookies and pies and, most importantly, keep their workers employed. It’s in this new outlook, one that embodies the spirit of rebuilding to survive, that Fabrizia perceives its motto: Living Life Zesty.
Meanwhile, Fabrizia continues to produce its limoncello, something that has served as a tonic to a lot of people during the pandemic. And it’s through this passion—a passion for the zest of lemons— that they embody the spirit of what it means to be Italian. A spirit of survival.
Miles Ryan Fisher (mfisher@osia. org) is the Editor-in-Chief of Italian America magazine.
Fabrizia Limoncello Cocktail Recipes
Fizzy Field of Lemons
2 oz Vodka 1 oz Fabrizia Limoncello 3 Basil Leaves Club Soda Add all ingredients except soda into a shaker. Add ice and shake until chilled. Double strain into a glass over crushed ice. Top with club soda and garnish with a lemon wheel and fresh basil.
(Recipe and photo courtesy of Kevin Chen @Chenaholic on Instagram)
The Limosa
Frozen Blackberries 2 oz Fabrizia Limoncello Prosecco Layer a handful of frozen blackberries in a glass. Add limoncello and top with Prosecco.
(Recipe and photo courtesy of @captain_cocktails on Instagram)
Limoncello Smash
1 oz Fabrizia Limoncello 1 oz Bourbon or Rye 0.5 oz Lemon Juice 0.5 oz Simple Syrup 3 Lemon Wedges Sprig of Mint Gently muddle mint and lemon wedges, being careful to muddle lemon flesh instead of rind. Shake vigorously with ice. Strain over fresh ice in glass. Garnish with copious lemon slices and mint.
(Recipe and photo courtesy of @potions.and.spirits on Instagram)
THE 32 ND ANNUAL NELA GALA
FRIDAY, MAY 28, 2021 A Virtual Celebration of Italian Heritage and Charity
BY MILES RYAN FISHER
For the first time in history, the Sons of Italy Foundation (SIF) hosted its 32nd Annual National Education & Leadership Awards (NELA) Gala virtually on the Friday of Memorial Day Weekend.
On this evening, the SIF presented awards to highly accomplished honorees, awarded scholarships to ten extraordinary students, and recognized veterans of the
OSDIA National Past President Paul S. Polo with his son, OSDIA National Third Vice President Michael G. Polo, proudly display the Polo Family’s 2021 SIF National Education & Leadership Award. military and its ongoing support of Help Our Military Heroes. The Order Sons and Daughters of Italy in America’s (OSDIA) Chief Operating Officer Joseph J. DiTrapani opened the night.
“Since 1989, the Sons of Italy Foundation—the philanthropic branch of the Order Sons and Daughters of Italy in America—has held this event to recognize the bright students awarded scholarships, to pay tribute to (those) serving in the armed forces, and to honor the accomplishments of outstanding Italian Americans,” he said. “This is the first ever virtual NELA Gala, and we would like to thank everyone who made this evening possible.”
Following Mr. DiTrapani was OSDIA National President Nancy DiFiore Quinn, who spoke on the difficulties that the Order rose above in the past year. “Since the beginning of the COVID pandemic, our world has faced a great deal of challenges,” she said. “But as Italian Americans, we are resilient, finding strength in each other and our community. Throughout my administration as National President, I have seen firsthand how well our organization has overcome these obstacles and how well we’ve adapted to these changes.”
She then remarked on the importance of the NELA Gala and all of those who supported it. “Your generosity is a powerful reminder of the impact we can make as Italian Americans.”
The Embassy of Italy First Counsellor Domenico Bellantone then made an appearance to recognize the Order and its Foundation’s efforts as well as the close relationship the Order has with the Italian Embassy. “My sincere grazie goes to your wonderful organization for the pivotal role you play in promoting Italian culture in the United States,” he said. “Among your achievements, allow me to recall the $200,000 donation to the Bocelli Foundation for the building of a school in Muccia.”
Following Mr. Bellantone’s address, soprano Maria Fassio Pignati performed beautiful renditions of “Fratelli d’Italia” and “The Star-Spangled Banner.”
OSDIA National Chaplain Rev. R. Adam Forno then offered the Invocation. “One hundred and sixteen years ago, it was you Lord, who inspired Dr. Vincenzo Sellaro to give new Americans of Italian descent a vision that would unify hearts and minds in bonds of fraternal charity and service that evolved in preserving our cultural heritage and eliminate ethnic prejudice through the work of our Order.”
For the 18th straight year, actor Joe Mantegna emceed the gala.
THE HONOREES
The Polo Family received the 2021 SIF National Education & Leadership Award (NELA) for their longtime support of Italian-American causes and commitment to the Order Sons & Daughters of Italy in America. Beginning with the marriage of Sebastian “Subby” Marco Polo and Mary DeAngelis in 1940, the family joined the OSDIA Hartford Lodge #333 in Connecticut. Subby served in several leadership positions, as did his sons, Paul S. Polo and Michael S. Polo. From 1995 to 1997, Paul Polo served as OSDIA’s National President and subsequently served as Sons of Italy Foundation President for eight years. Today, his son, Michael G. Polo, serves as OSDIA National Third Vice President.
Mr. Paul Polo offered some wisdom about what led him to become successful in the aerospace manufacturing business. “I (was) working third shift at Pratt Whitney aircraft with three children. I was living, hopefully, weekto-week. So I took a part-time job at a small manufacturing company in Manchester, Connecticut, and thirteen years later, I owned the company. And some people have asked me, ‘How did you do that?’ Well, I try to treat people the way I want people to treat me. It doesn’t always work, but I try. And always be truthful in everything you do.”
Following Mr. Polo, his sons, Michael G. and Daniel, spoke about the business and the Polo family.
Yolanda Cellucci received the 2021 SIF Award for Excellence in Business for her success in the fashion industry. Known as “Fashion’s First Lady,” Yolanda opened her first store in Belmont, Massachusetts, in 1968. She then built a multimillion-dollar empire that included a bridal boutique, full-service beauty salon, and a health spa, during a fashion career that spanned over 50 years. Yolanda was highly regarded for producing fantastic over-the-top fashion shows, which made her a favorite guest on local and national television shows. She currently hosts her own show, Yolanda Style & Glamor, on WCAC-TV.
In accepting the award, Ms. Cellucci spoke about her upbringing and how it taught her what is important in life. “I was fortunate to grow up in an Italian home full of love, food, and respect. A home where family and friends could always feel welcome to drop in,” she said. “We were taught early on that you could be anything you wanted to be through hard work and dedication, but to always show respect and kindness. My mom and dad showered us all with love and lessons learned.”
She then imparted some words for everyone to live by. “I tell everyone that there are three stages in life,” she said. “There’s learning. There’s earning. And then returning.”
The 2021 SIF Humanitarian Award was presented to Bob and Lisa Tramontano for their lifelong dedication to charitable and civic organizations. With a belief in “Faith, Family, and Food,” the Tramontanos returned the blessings that life and Bob’s 37-year career at NCR gave them by helping the church and by helping women in difficult situations take control of their lives while creating a home
The 2021 SIF Award for Excellence in Business honoree, Yolanda Cellucci.
The 2021 SIF Humanitarian Award honorees, Bob and Lisa Tramontano.
for their children. Over the last ten years, they have focused their efforts on Seton Home—a residential community that helps young girls, ages 12-18, that are pregnant due to abuse and neglect—and Guadalupe Home—a transitional shelter for adult women who are living on the streets, are pregnant or parenting, and need shelter.
In accepting the award, Bob and Lisa Tramontano spoke about their dedication to charity, and Bob shared a particularly memorable anecdote about his family.
“I dated Lisa for five years before we got married, and I remember going to my grandmother, who was a wonderful Italian cook, and I said, ‘Grandma, teach Lisa how to make sauce.’ Because my mom used to have us grind tomatoes and … make braciole and meatballs on Sundays, and I wanted to be able to keep that tradition alive. And my grandma said, ‘Yes, I’ll teach Lisa how to make sauce.’ I said, ‘Well great, Lisa’s available next weekend.’ She said, ‘No, I can’t.’ And I said, ‘Why?’ And she said, ‘Because you’re not getting married for two weeks, and she could leave you at the altar and have my recipe. I’m only teaching her after you two are married.’”
Joseph Mele received the 2021 SIF Lifetime Achievement Award for his accomplishments as a designer, inventor, and entrepreneur, having earned three engineering degrees. He developed the Meleform process, a revolutionary concept in the forging industry which can be applied to many industries including aviation, automotive, shipbuilding, and civil structures. He also worked on a system using Isogrid Panels to capture the wind more efficiently than conventional Fiberglass Turbines for creating electrical power. For this and the Maleform process, he holds patents.
Mr. Mele spoke about his involvement with ItalianAmerican organizations and how proud his father would be about his receiving this award. “I wish my father was here. He would’ve loved to have his first born in this country be honored like I am today. He loved this country very much, as I do,” he said. “I would like to thank those Americans of Italian descent who continue to love this country like they loved their country in Italy.”
THE SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS
Fifteen very promising students received SIF scholarships ranging from $5,000 to $20,000 and totaling more than $100,000. As with all past NELA Galas, a main focus
The 2021 SIF Lifetime Achievement Award honoree, Joseph Mele.
USArmy Col Philip Lee Swinford (ret.), the Sons of Italy Foundation’s 2020 van recipient through Help Our Military Heroes, talks about his injury and how the van has affected his quality of life. Visit www.osia.org to view the video.
of the program involved the awarding of scholarships to undergraduate and graduate students of Italian descent for their exemplary combination of academic performance, school leadership, and community service.
Since 1989, several millions of dollars in scholarships have been awarded at the 32 NELA Galas. SIF President Joseph Sciame pointed to the Foundation’s annual presentation of scholarships. “We want to acknowledge the outstanding scholarship students, young people who are entering every field of endeavor,” he said. “This is our showcase event. It happens once a year. And we look forward not only to tonight, which is virtual, but next year when we can meet you in person.”
THE VETERANS
General Peter W. Chiarelli (United States Army,
Ret.)—the NELA Gala’s second Honorary Chairman—led the military portion of the evening following tenor Michael Amante’s annual performance of the Armed Forces Medley. He did so in part by acknowledging the Foundation’s past and present contributions to patriotic causes.
“The Sons of Italy Foundation helped fund the creation of the World War II Memorial and the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial,” he said. “In recent years the Sons of Italy Foundation has given tens of thousands of dollars to various groups that support veterans’ causes, including the Wounded Warrior Project, the Gary Sinise Foundation, Luke’s Wings, and Help Our Military Heroes, among others.”
General Chiarelli then introduced an incredibly moving video featuring last year’s van recipient, USArmy Col Philip Lee Swinford (ret.), that was made possible through the SIF’s donation to Help Our Military Heroes (HOMH). Col Swinford is an Incomplete Quadriplegic suffering from Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) due to IEDs on multiple deployments. The video showed the impact that the van has had on Col Swinford’s life and can be viewed on the Order Sons and Daughters of Italy in America’s website: www.osia.org. View the entire 32nd Annual NELA Gala online at www.osia.org
Congratulations to the 2021 sons of italy foundation (sif) national leadership grant reCipients
The Charles Evans Scholarship ALESSIA WELCH
Hometown: Dallas, TX School: University of California San Diego – La Jolla, California Alessia is an incoming freshman who will study Computer Science with a focus on Artificial Intelligence. While in high school, she competed in figure skating for the Dallas Figure Skating Club, worked as a ball kid for the Dallas Mavericks, and volunteered at the Dallas Zoo. She earned a perfect score of 36 on the ACT and had an unweighted 4.0 at Ursuline Academy of Dallas. Columbus Citizens Foundation Scholarship
ALEXANDER DENNIS
Hometown: Franklin, MI School: University of Michigan Medical School – Ann Arbor, MI Alex graduated from the University of Michigan with a Bachelor of Science in Italian in 2017. Following graduation, he received a Fulbright Student Award to teach in Italy and spent a year living in Campobasso (Molise region), where he taught classes focused on economics, marketing, and international relations. He spent the summer of 2020 translating his grandfather’s memoirs from the Barese dialect into English. Alex is now enrolled in the University of Michigan Medical School.
The Anthony J. & Eldora B. Perfilio Scholarship for Italian Language AMANDA COCCIA
Hometown: Medford, NY School: Middlebury College – Middlebury, VT Amanda is a rising junior at Middlebury College double-majoring in Italian and French. She is also taking Sicilian language courses with the Italian Charities of America and will begin research this summer for her thesis on the Creole Italian (mixed language) that was birthed out of Italian migration to the United States. After she earns her degree, she plans on becoming a language teacher.
The Henry F. Salvatori Memorial Scholarship ANTHONY ZITO
Hometown: San Jose, CA School: California Polytechnic State University – San Luis Obispo, CA Anthony is an incoming freshman at California Polytechnic State University, where he will major in Business Administration. In high school, he served as Vice President of the FIRST Robotics Team 1351 and was also a staff writer for his school newspaper, The Monarch. He is a member of the National Honor Society and the California Scholarship Federation.
The Lucia & Antonio De Vico Family Scholarship BENNETT DIDENTE COMERFORD
Hometown: Bend, OR School: Harvard University/Harvard Divinity School – Cambridge, MA Bennett received his Bachelor of Arts in Italian Studies and Master of Theological Studies from Boston College. He is currently a doctoral candidate in the Committee on the Study of Religion at Harvard University, where he specializes in comparative religious studies and South Asian religions. As an undergrad, he received the Italian Book Award from the Boston College Romance Languages and Literatures Department.
Hometown: Lansdale, PA School: University of Pittsburgh – Pittsburgh, PA
Catherine is an incoming freshman at the University of Pittsburgh
Honors College, where she will study Neuroscience. She is a 2021
U.S. Presidential Scholar and founded the Spanish Translation Project, an initiative to translate the Pennsylvania common core biology, chemistry, and health curricula into Spanish. She is also gifted cellist who has performed at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center in the Nashville Fields of Gold Honors Orchestra.
The DeSantis/Giuffrida Scholarship COLE MCCUBBINS
Hometown: Salt Lake City, UT School: University of Cambridge – Cambridge, United Kingdom Cole is an incoming Master’s student studying economics at the University of Cambridge. He graduated magna cum laude from the University of Utah and is the first in his family to acquire Italian citizenship by jure sanguinis. While an undergrad, he was recognized for his novel economic research on food insecurity and disruptive technologies.
The Lido Club of Washington, DC Scholarship ESTER LUNA
Hometown: Washington, DC School: Yale University – New Haven, CT Ester is an incoming freshman at Yale University, where she will study Comparative Literature and Linguistics as a double-major. She speaks three native languages (Italian, English, and French) and is fluent in Chinese and Spanish. She also works as a freelance translator from/into Italian, French, and English for the nonprofits conSLAncio and American Friends of Chartres. This summer, she will be an Italian camp counselor at Concordia College’s ‘Language Villages.’
The Franzone Family Scholarship FELICIA RAGUCCI
Hometown: Tewksbury, MA School: Dartmouth College – Hanover, NH Felicia is a rising junior at Dartmouth College, where she studies English and Biology and is completing pre-medical courses. Last year, from January to March 2020, she interned at the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Headquarters, exploring science
communications and helping the Quarantine Branch respond to the rapidly emerging COVID-19 pandemic. Most recently, she interned at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Headquarters and completed a space history research project for an upcoming e-book.
The Joseph Sciame Scholarship FRANCESCA MARINI
Hometown: Sagamore Beach, MA School: University of Pennsylvania – Philadelphia, PA Francesca graduated from the University of Pennsylvania last spring and is currently enrolled at the UPenn School of Engineering & Applied Science, where she will graduate in 2022 with a Master of Science in Engineering in Computer & Information Science. She has worked in Natural Language Processing research (a branch of machine learning) and co-authored two research publications. She is also a United States Figure Skating Gold Medalist in
Moves in the Field.
The Pietro Secchia Memorial Scholarship GABRIELLA WHITED
Hometown: San Francisco, CA School: John Cabot University – Rome, Italy Gabriella is currently studying at Santa Monica College and has been accepted to John Cabot University in Rome next year. At 16, she wrote and published her first song, “I keep on falling,” and at 17, she started an online e-commerce store called Diavoline. In 2020, she was invited to speak at the “Stronger Than You Think” program to address mental wellness for teens.
The Angelo Tomasso Sr. Scholarship JOHN VANETTI
Hometown: Louisville, KY School: Purdue University – West LaFayette, IN John is an incoming freshman at Purdue University and will be majoring in Aerospace Engineering. While in high school, he graduated from the Kentucky Governor’s Scholars Program and worked as a Seeds of Change biological researcher in Costa Rica. He hopes to use his degree to contribute to space exploration and expand the horizons of humanity. The Cappellotti Family Scholarship
JULIANNA BIBBO
Hometown: Pasadena, MD College: Villanova University – Villanova, PA Julianna is an incoming freshman at Villanova University. In high school, she was the only student to receive all three honors awarded for service/scholarship, outstanding school spirit, and personal character. She founded the organization “Cards2Care4Teens,” which designs and distributes support cards for teens facing health and/or economic hardships. She also received both the United States President’s Gold Level Volunteer Service Award and the Maryland Governor’s Volunteer Service Commendation.
The American University of Rome/Sons of Italy Foundation Scholarship SAMANTHA PIROZZOLO
Hometown: Staten Island, NY School: The American University of Rome – Rome, Italy Samantha is a rising senior at the American University of Rome, where she is majoring in Business Administration with a minor in International Relations. She has worked in four foreign countries, including Zimbabwe as a stable manager, China as an au pair, South Korea as a farm hand, and Italy as a resident advisor for the university. While in Zimbabwe, she also learned how to ride horses in the African bush.
The Peter & Jeri DeJana Foundation Law Scholarship SERGIO VALENTE
Hometown: Palo Alto, CA School: Stanford Law School – Stanford, CA Sergio will be a second-year student at Stanford Law School this fall. He graduated from American University with degrees in international relations and economics. At 14, Sergio studied abroad in Rome, Italy, and took all his classes in Italian despite not speaking the language at the time. At Stanford, he serves as a leader of the Clean Slate Pro Bono Project, which helps former convicts expunge their criminal records and reintegrate into society.
