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The Italian American Executives of Transportation have donated $6,500 from the proceeds of their 2022 fashion show to Casa Italia. The check was presented to Casa Chairman Ron Onesti by Fashion Show Committee Co-Chair Dr. Michele Monica Daly at the IAET’s July meeting. The event was also co-chaired by Theresa Cascio and Grace Galletta, with Jadon Quaglia as chair. “Casa Italia has been a home away from home for the Chicago-area Italian-American community for more than two decades,” says IAET President Vito D’Ambrosio. “We encourage everyone to open their hearts and wallets on the Casa’s behalf.”

The Mazzini Verdi Club was done up with Las Vegas pizzazz for this year’s Festa Fuori. More than 250 members and guests turned out to enjoy the evening’s festivities. Emcee Paul Ciminello sang the American and Italian national anthems, and Diamanti provided music for dining and dancing. Chef Giorgio Mei’s menu included risotto Bolognese con funghi and beef tenderloin. Ladies Club President Lydia Arnstein thanked the many volunteers who pitched in to artfully decorate the tables and fence in the club’s expansive outdoor seating area.  

Last year, Società Santa Fara di Cinisi successfully lobbied the city of Chicago to name the stretch of road outside of their clubhouse on Addison Street Honorary Via Santa Fara di Cinisi. The society was presented with an extra sign at the time, which it shipped to the mayor of Cinisi, Sicily, to display outside their town hall. The sign was installed in Sicily on July 10 during the Feast of Santa Fara. “This was done to keep the lines of communication open between the town of our birth and the Cinisensi of Chicago,” says society President Carlo Vaniglia. “It …

Members of the Associazione Regionale Campania will head west this spring, visiting President Grant’s home and the Blaum Distillery in Galena, Illinois, and the Dickeyville Grotto and Shrines in Dickeyville, Wisconsin. Erected on the grounds of the Holy Ghost Parish in Dickeyville, the expansive display of religious and patriotic art was created by Fr. Matthias Wernerus, pastor of the parish from 1918-31. The grotto contains several shrines, including ones dedicated to the Blessed Mother, the Holy Eucharist and Christ the King.  

The main conference room of Addison’s village hall has long been graced by a display celebrating the village’s sister city relationship with Triggiano, Italy. That exhibit has been enhanced thanks to a generous donation of images and documents by Angela Liberio. Angela’s late husband, Vincenzo, helped forge the relationship, which was launched in 1993. Since then, regular student exchanges have been sponsored between high schools in the two municipalities. Angela (left) bestowed the memorabilia upon Addison Clerk Lucille Zucchero (right).  

Joseph Izzo was the driving force behind RationAll Food Rescue, which salvaged food from grocery stores, restaurants and other businesses, and delivered it to food pantries and shelters. When Izzo succumbed to cancer earlier this year, the board voted to dissolve the nonprofit, making a sizeable donation to the Marie Wilkinson Food Pantry in Aurora. The pantry used the funds to buy a food waste composter, naming it “The Izzo” in his honor.  

State Rep. Anthony DeLuca was recognized as a Champion of the Southland at the South Suburban Mayors and Managers’ annual gala. A longtime advocate for increased state support for local government, DeLuca spearheaded the Southland Reactivation Act, which was recently signed into law. The act creates a special designation for underutilized property in the south suburban communities located in Bloom, Bremen, Calumet, Rich, Thornton and Worth townships. Qualified properties will have their previous assessed valuations significantly reduced, encouraging development and returning the properties to the tax rolls.  

Italian immigrants who sought a better life for themselves and their families on Chicago’s Near West Side were honored on May 22 with the naming of Piazza Italia di Chicago at 1434 W. Taylor St. The Little Italy Chicago Neighborhood Association (LICNA) spearheaded the renaming of the former Piazza Di Maggio, installing flags that represent each of Italy’s 20 regions. During the renaming ceremony, many of the flags were presented by descendants of Little Italy immigrants, while others were presented by newer neighborhood residents and longtime businesspeople. Keynote speaker Thomas Botzios, Italy’s consul general in Chicago, called the flags “a …

Cav Uff. Lyn Scolaro has been elected president of the Sons and Daughters of Italy in America. Scolaro takes the helm from Pat Pierce, who briefly succeeded founder and longtime president Joe Papa. “I want to thank Pat for doing such a great job of leading SADIA,” says Papa, who stepped down as president when he moved to Florida in January. “The organization has made a great choice in electing Lyn. She’s a dynamo, and I’m sure she’ll take the organization to new heights.” SADIA began as the Order Sons of Italy Lodge 2446 in the early 1950s and became …

It seems that everywhere you turn these days, governments, businesses, organizations and individuals are donating their time, talents and funds to Ukraine as it battles valiantly against Russian invaders. Local artist Fillippo Aliperta is doing his part by creating ceramic “heart pins” that portray the American and Ukrainian flags and giving them away at his Glenview hair salon, Estetica. At press time, he had raised $500 in goodwill donations. “I feel that everyone should support the Ukrainian people in every way that they can,” Aliperta says.