Festival Center

Casa Italia’s Festival Center was transformed into an elegant banquet hall on June 30 for the wedding reception of Renee Sarno and Joe Gagliardo. Janet Sarno, a wedding planner and the mother of the bride, was the magician behind the transformation, bringing in a crew that labored for three days to install the lighting, decorations, table dressings and dance floor that transformed down-to-earth venue into a wedding wonderland.

“I’ve planned many weddings, mostly in downtown venues that were all fabulous. For my daughter’s wedding, I wanted something equally beautiful and elegant but I also wanted to bring back the spirit of the big, old fashioned Italian wedding,” Sarno says. “We couldn’t have picked a better place to have it than Casa Italia. We all wanted the wedding to be more like a fun party, and I really think we did it!”

Casa Italia’s Festival Center and grounds are available to rent throughout the year for personal, organizational and corporate events. Currently the site of patron saint festivals, company and club picnics, rummage sales, community festivals, and family parties from May to November, the Festival Center is the site of the Feast of San Francesco di Paola, the JCCIA’s Columbus Day reception, and Casa Italia’s Fall Festival and Music Festival under the Stars, to name only a few.

Visit casaitaliachicago.org or call 708-345-5933 for details.