Profiles

Trained in classic techniques, Verona-born sculptor Virginio Ferrari now expresses universal themes through elemental forms from his home and studio in Chicago. As the sun rises over Chicago every morning, thousands of drivers on the Kennedy Expressway see light reflecting off the elegant curves of a sculpture that sits right where the expressway ends at Orleans Street. The prominent location of this serene 1983 work, called “Being Born,” reflects the city of Chicago’s high regard for its creator, sculptor Virginio Ferrari, who is from Verona but lives in the Windy City. Over a seven-decade career, Ferrari has created countless works …

After being a fixture in the Chicago culinary scene for decades, Joe Monastero has taken his passion for the restaurant industry to a whole new level as an executive for the Texas Restaurant Association. As chief revenue officer of the Texas Restaurant Association, Joe Monastero knows the Italian dining scene in Texas like few others. Monastero also serves as trustee for the Catering Executives Club of America board (where he is past chairman and president) and is the immediate past co-chairman of the Milan-Chicago Committee of Sister Cities International. Now residing in Austin, Texas, Monastero grew up less than a …

Bianca Maldonado likes to say that the universe leads people where they are meant to be — and her life, in many ways, is testament to that. For one, if it weren’t for the abrupt closure of the Chicago radio station she worked for, it’s hard to know whether she would have found her life’s passion as a clinical mental health therapist. Maldonado, nee Ferreri, grew up in Burbank and graduated from Mother McAuley High School in Chicago. After studying at the Illinois Center for Broadcasting in Lombard, at age 19 she became the youngest woman — and one of …

Dr. Charles Martello had already been practicing dentistry for more than a decade before he first became aware of, and subsequently involved with, the Arcolian Dental Arts Society in 2002. Martello graduated from Loyola University’s dental school in 1987 and joined several other dental societies when he began his career, including the American Dental Association, Illinois State Dental Society, and Chicago Dental Society. “I wish that I had been a member (of the Arcolians) when I was back at Loyola,” Martello says. “It is a great group but I didn’t know of it and when you’re at that level you’re …

Carl Liture — who sold newspapers at the Century of Progress world’s fair in 1933-34 and witnessed the landing on Lake Michigan of Italo Balbo’s historic transatlantic flight — turned 100 on Dec. 26, 2025. The eldest of two sons born to Giuseppe and Giuseppina (Varvaro) Liturri, Carl grew up in the Italian enclave known as The Patch on the Near Northwest Side of Chicago. (The spelling of his last name was changed when he registered for school and the staffer wrote it the way it was pronounced rather than asking him for the spelling.) Carl worked a series of …

A standout at the opening ceremony of the 2026 Milano Cortina Games, Laura Pausini has carved a niche for herself in the global music pantheon thanks to her vocal prowess and a multilingual approach to her craft. It really is incredible just how much the Sanremo Music Festival, Italy’s premier annual song competition, has influenced the music scene internationally. From Andrea Bocelli to Il Volo, more superstars have emerged from this event than almost any other of its kind. The winner of the Newcomer Artist competition in 1993, then 19-year-old Laura Pausini is a perfect example of how singing in …

As a Geospatial Engineer for the Army National Guard, Zachary DeRose creates maps that help U.S. and allied troops plan their military operations. The son of Edward and Cristine Churchill DeRose, Zachary DeRose was born in Worth, Illinois. He has an older half-brother and a younger sister. When DeRose was 3 years old, the family moved to Plainfield, where he grew up. DeRose’s paternal grandfather emigrated from Sicily. Most holidays were celebrated at DeRose’s paternal grandparents’ home in Oak Lawn because his maternal grandparents lived in downstate Illinois. “We always had big family feasts, 20 to 30 of us at …

Entering a dark period in his life, acclaimed restaurateur Bruno Abate battled his way back into the light by founding a groundbreaking program at Cook County Jail. After his mother taught him to deeply appreciate fresh, high-quality food, Italian native Bruno Abate became a successful Chicago-area restaurateur with a mission to help others. In 2010, Abate founded Recipe for Change, a nonprofit that provides culinary instruction, job skills training, fine arts enrichment and mentorship to detainees at Cook County Jail. Over the last 16 years, about 6,000 people have participated in the nonprofit’s programs. A resident of Winnetka in suburban …

A legend in the Chicago-area culinary community, Phil Stefani will be exporting his talents to Italy as one of two partners in a ground-breaking restaurant on Vatican property. “There’s only one Chicago restaurateur who has the connections you need in Italy. It’s Phil Stefani.” That’s what Art Smith, known as “Oprah’s Chef,” recalls being told, and the two restaurateurs formed a partnership to create a unique-in-the-world restaurant on Vatican land near Rome. The restaurant’s mission is to honor the late Pope Francis’ vision of environmental sustainability, and the project has Pope Leo’s full support. Stefani, whose ancestors hail from Lucca, …

Since the start of 2025, Casa Italia has undergone a dramatic transformation after switching landlords for the first time in its history. To lead the group through this rinascimento, Casa Italia’s board chose a man with a lifetime of experience in banking and finance. “They wanted my guidance and I was honored,” says Peter Volpe, whose term as Casa’s Chairman runs the rest of the year. Casa Italia has been a “home away from home” for the Chicago-area Italian-American community for more than a quarter of a century, according to Volpe. For most of that time, the Casa leased the …