Samuel J. Cascio, D.D.S., received the Marshall H. Smulson D.D.S. Humanitarian Award at the Ed Kelly 41st annual Giant Awards in June. A U.S. Navy veteran who served in World War II, Dr. Cascio earned his D.D.S. degree from Loyola University. He has held leadership positions in the Chicago Dental Society, the Academy of General Dentistry on the state and local level, the Arcolian Dental Arts Society, the University of Illinois at Chicago and the Loyola School of Dentistry. Dr. Cascio has been honored by St. Mary’s University, Loyola, the Illinois State Dental Society and the Knights of Columbus to …

  How good is your homemade wine? To find out, sign up for the fourth annual Battle of the Vino. Hosted by Angelo Caputo’s Fresh Markets, the event will be staged on Aug. 29 at the grocery chain’s new Carol Stream store, 520 E. North Ave. Home winemakers are invited to vie for a $250 Caputo’s gift card and other prizes; learn new tricks from Caputo’s resident wine experts; and sample wines, cheeses and deli meats as they put their own wine to the test. (630-620-4444, ext. 1034; www.caputomarkets.com)  

  Ballet Légere will hold auditions for its 31st annual production of “The Nutcracker” on Aug. 15 and 16 at Légere Dance Centre in River Forest. Parts are available for girls ages 4-1/2 and up with heights ranging from 45 to 61 inches; boys ages 5 to 12; gymnasts and tumblers; and male and female dancers, both teen and adult, for pointe and non-pointe roles. Callbacks will be held Aug. 22 to 30. Ballet Légere has been performing “The Nutcracker” annually under the direction of Donna Vittorio since 1985. (773-237-1874, www.balletlegere.org)  

  “We Gotta Bingo” is the latest interactive theatrical event to take Chicago by storm. Slated to open for an extended run on Aug. 3 at the new Chicago Theatre Works on Belmont Avenue, the show is set at a fundraiser for a pair of Catholic parishes — one mostly Italian, one more Irish — that are about to merge. The audience interacts throughout the evening with a cast of characters that includes local actors Jane Allyson-D’Arienzo, Mitch Conti, Jerry Marzullo and Jennifer Pompa. (wegottabingo.com)

  The view out of the Kemper Building at 1 E. Wacker Drive is magnificent, sprawling out to an eagle’s view of the Chicago River and the Loop. But when Deanna Cairo Arthur, now an associate at Goldberg Weisman & Cairo Ltd., would visit her father’s office as a child, it wasn’t the window that drew her attention. It was a desk chair. “I just remember being little and being in my dad’s office, sitting in his chair and always hoping someday it would be my chair,” she says. Her father is Louis C. “Lou” Cairo, senior partner at Illinois’ …

  This year marked another great feast in honor of Saint Joseph at Dominican University. Under the supervision of Prof. Tonia Triggiano, students and volunteers fed more than 200 people, raising a record-breaking $1,195, which was gifted to Catholic Charities. Such foods as gelato, fine cheeses, pastas and Italian sweets were donated by local kitchens and eating establishments. None of it would be possible without the collaborative help of the students, faculty, staff and alumni who call themselves “Gli Amici di San Giuseppe.” The Dominican University community played a big role in putting together the table. Michael Meranda, a Dominican …

  What a fabulous year the American Association of Teachers of Italian-Midwest Chapter has had! Our current membership stands at 50 with an increased number of 16 from 2014. Four of these members are from Indiana and Ohio. There are ommittees currently in progress working on an Immersion Day scheduled for February, 2016, in collaboration with College of DuPage and to create a “Why Take Italian?” brochure for parents and students in the middle school. On November 7, 2014, the AATI-Midwest held its second annual Fall Conference, “Oltre ai Limiti,” with partial sponsorship by Italidea-Midwest. There were 39 colleagues from …

State Rep. John D’Amico passed legislation aimed at helping law enforcement keep better track of plates on the road by creating a universal special license plate. The Universal Special License Plate created by House Bill 1081 will have a space on the plate for each organization’s unique decal. Current specialty plates will remain as long as the number of applicants remains above 2,000. If the number of applicants for the plates falls below 1,000 for two calendar years, the plates will be exchanged for universal plates. All military plates will be exempt from these terms. The bill awaits consideration by …

State Rep. Anthony DeLuca recently passed House Bill 113 prohibiting state officials from making funding announcements immediately before a general election. Under current law, state officials are prohibited during the ‘blackout’ period before an election from using their name, image or voice on any type of correspondence using taxpayer money. This prohibition includes using taxpayer money to distribute promotional materials, including mail to constituents, about new laws or upcoming votes. DeLuca’s legislation would extend this ‘blackout’ to include publically announcing grants and contracts awarded as well. The bill passed the house unanimously and has been sent to the Senate for …

    Maestro Riccardo Muti and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s 2014 performance of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 is available for free on-demand video streaming at cso.org/Beethoven9. The performance — recorded at Orchestra Hall in Chicago on September 18, 2014 — opened the CSO’s 2014/15 season. It featured Riccardo Muti and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Chicago Symphony Chorus, prepared by Chorus Director Duain Wolfe, and vocal soloists soprano Camilla Nylund, mezzo-soprano Ekaterina Gubanova, tenor Matthew Polenzani, and bass-baritone Eric Owens. Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony is recognized today as one of the pivotal works in the history of music by virtue of …