Welcome: Convention and Marconi Gala Chair

guglIelmO marcOnI award & BIennIal natIOnal cOnventIOn chaIrS Welcome

Frank J. Panessa

Trustee Emeritus Co-Chair, Guglielmo Marconi Award Committee

Joanne L. Strollo

National Past President Co-Chair, Guglielmo Marconi Award Committee

Welcome to the Order Sons & Daughters of Italy in America’s 56th Biennial National Convention and the Guglielmo Marconi Award Gala. In keeping with a long-standing tradition, we gather here in convention as leaders and delegates to call upon the principles of our beloved Order—Liberty, Equality, Fraternity—to guide us in making decisions that will steer the course of the organization over the next two years.

We are a national organization, our members and supporters stretching coast to coast and north to south. Although we are unified through our common Italian ancestry, our experiences with our heritage and OSDIA vary. This convention provides the opportunity to share stories, exchange ideas, and forge new friendships that will facilitate working together as brothers and sisters.

Tonight we conclude our convention with a wonderful banquet—the Guglielmo Marconi Award Gala—during which we proudly present OSDIA’s highest honor. Named for the Italian inventor of wireless telegraphy, the Guglielmo Marconi Award is given to an individual who has made important contributions to the United States, exemplifying the ideals of the Order.

This year we honor Representative Thomas Richard Suozzi, an Italian American who not only holds public office in representing New York’s 3rd District but has also been a member of the Order’s Loggia Glen Cove #1016 for 28 years - having joined back in 1991! Prior to being elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, Mr. Suozzi served as Mayor of Glen Cove, New York, his hometown, from 1994 to 2001. He then served as Nassau County Executive from 2002 to 2009 during which Governing magazine named him “Public Official of the Year.”

We are proud of Tom’s past accomplishments, look forward to his future accomplishments, and are pleased to honor him tonight at this dinner which formally ends our 56th Biennial Convention.

Enjoy the evening!