Columns

  You’ve travelled a long road and you’ve finally closed on your home, but your journey has just begun. While you’re making plans to decorate your house, renovate your kitchen or plant your garden, there are a few items I suggest you add to your to-do list. Start out my by making sure your important documents are protected. They should be kept inside of a fireproof safe or a safety deposit box. For example, a packet was given to you at your closing that includes all your mortgage documents. Before you put them away, you may want to contact the …

  “Cream-colored ponies and crisp apple strudels, doorbells and sleigh bells and schnitzel with noodles,” those are a few of Maria’s favorite things in “The Sound of Music.” As you can imagine, mine are far more Italian than that. As promised last month, here’s my short list. My family’s red sauce — Or do you say gravy? There are as many pasta sauces as there are bloodlines in Italy, and everyone’s sugo is the best. The gravy that my wife now lovingly prepares descends from la famiglia Basile of Sora, a mountain town southeast of Roma. Like most Roman sauces, …

  August may be fast approaching, but there’s still time to fulfill your summer bucket list. For all current and former residents of Pullman and environs, that means marking your calendars for the 22nd Annual Pullman Reunion Picnic. Scheduled for noon on Saturday, Aug. 4, in Arcade Park, the event serves as an ideal opportunity to reminisce with family and friends and to reconnect with your family’s history. Due to Pullman’s admirable preservation efforts, the area has been largely unchanged since its original construction in the 1880s. Langley Avenue has always been home to many apartment buildings and has seen …

Mother’s Day and Father’s Day have come and gone, and many friends and family members posted photos honoring their parents, as did I. As a genealogist, I can tell from the photos people posted just how well they have preserved their photo collections. Some people have 20 clear sharp images of themselves with their father or mother over a range of years. Some people have one blurry old polaroid that could have used a flash bulb! Also, in recent weeks, a cousin of mine had a fire at their home that started at the neighbors. Fortunately, no one was injured. …

  When shopping for a mortgage, the Loan Estimate is going to be your shopping tool. It’s a treasure trove that reveals a wide range of costs and other valuable information. The Loan Estimate or LE replaced the Good Faith Estimate or GFE a few years ago when the Fed put into place some new rules. The GFE showed the rates and closing cost but did not show other important aspects the loan. The LE is a 3-page document that clearly and simply shows the following: Loan Amount Interest Rate Monthly Payment Type of loan and amortization If there are …

  I envy the first Italian Americans: those brave souls who catapulted themselves into the unknown and stared down countless hardships to create a better life for their families in a strange, new land. They brought with them little more than the shirts on their backs and the culture that shaped them, but that was more than enough. Settling with their paesani in ethnic enclaves, they reconstructed that culture from the ground up, celebrating La Vita Italiana in their homes, businesses, places of worship and wherever else they gathered. Family recipes were prepared by heart in their kitchens, canzoni popolari …

  I’ve had more than a few good cries since my father passed away in early May. He lived a long life and he was busy and robust until the end, and I’m grateful for that. But in some ways, it makes the loss even harder to bear. Tears still flow over the smallest of things, like driving to Joseph’s Finest Meats for the first time without my dad’s sausage order in hand; or giving his last bay leaf plant a new home in my backyard; or sorting through old photos of him with his parents, or of his parents …

A sixth-generation Italian American with a profound connection to her roots, Carla Simonini, Ph.D., arrives in Chicago next month to lead Loyola University’s Italian-American Studies program. Complimenti! It took five years, a massive fund-raising campaign that netted $500,000 and a historic commitment by Loyola University of Chicago, but our metropolis finally has an Italian-American studies program to call its own. Though the program is based at Loyola, which matched the $500,000 to create a $1 million endowment, organizers say it also belongs to the local Italian-American community, which will be invited to participate through a variety of outreach efforts. These …

After 70 years in Italian America, I am still searching for the “Queen of Little Italy.” No, she’s not one of those lovely young ladies who reign over the Columbus Day Parade. My queen was short and stout and tough, and she packed a gun. She died in 1920. In her day, she controlled more votes than any other woman in Chicago. She was a midwife who delivered her voters into the world at their birth and to the polls on election day. She was a strong leader who in her time defied every stereotype of women, Italians and immigrants. …

Someone asked me an innocuous question about how to find their grandfather on a passenger list. Eighteen hours later, I discovered that a LOT has changed. A few years ago, the only way to find a passenger list was via microfilm. These days, it’s easier but it’s harder! To find your ancestor’s passenger list, you need to know: Ancestor’s name in the old country Approximate age Port he arrived at in America (it’s not always New York!) Ship he came in on Date he arrived You can use the declaration of intention or petition for naturalization to get this information. …