Fra Noi Embrace Your Inner Italian
Robert Allegrini, the longest-serving member of the Milan-Chicago Sister City Committee, was named its co-chairman at the Chicago Sister Cities board meeting in February. First appointed to the committee by Mayor Richard M. Daley in 1989, Allegrini has served under more than half a dozen committee chairs and worked with eight different Milan mayors to promote cultural and economic exchanges between the two cities.
In his capacity as co-chair, the former hospitality PR executive and Italian community advocate will be charged with forging closer ties between Chicago and Milan, official sister cities since 1973. Allegrini will be aided in those efforts by his Chicago co-chair, Texas Restaurant Association executive Joe Monastero, and his Milan co-chair, Princess Francesca Parvizyar.
Of Allegrini’s appointment, Chicago Sister Cities International Executive Director Adrienne Tongate says, “We’re thrilled to have the opportunity to work with Robert in his new role as the co-chair. Robert is a true leader and ambassador of our city’s rich and vibrant Italian-American community. We have many wonderful opportunities ahead to further strengthen our relationship with Milan and promote Chicago as a leading global city.”
Allegrini, who also serves as honorary consul for the republic of San Marino, looks forward to his new role with equal enthusiasm. “Chicago and Milan have so much in common. They are both centers of finance, design and architecture, and they both benefit from creative, hard-working citizens,” he says. “There is a great deal we can do together for the benefit of these two dynamic destinations.”
