Profiles

Joseph Tamburino has served as mayor of Hillside since 1981. During his tenure, he has launched countless initiatives on behalf of Hillside residents, including the Taxi Cab Program for Seniors, Youth Athletic Parade, spring clean-up program, summer concert series, and the annual Memorial Day Service and Veterans Day Parade. One of the founders of the Hillside Chamber of Commerce, Tamburino was instrumental in the development of the 32-acre shopping development known as the Hillside Town Center. A lifelong resident of the Hillside/Berkeley area, he previously served as village trustee and chairman of the Finance Committee and Community Affairs Committee.

John Valle has served as York Township supervisor since 2005. While in office, he has improved and stabilized township finances and established a fiscally responsible cash reserve. A resident of York Township for 35 years, he has served as a township trustee, Oakbrook Terrace alderman, president of the Oakbrook Terrace Fire Protection District, president of the Oakbrook Terrace Lions Club, chairman of the DuPage County Crimestoppers and board member of the Illinois State Crime Commission. He is a member of the Elmhurst Masonic Lodge #941 and a Medinah Shriner.

Richard Veenstra has served as mayor of Addison since 2013, having served as deputy mayor since 1992. A village resident for 40 years, he is chairman of the Addison Town Center Planning Committee; past chairman of the Building, Zoning and Development Committee, Public Health, Safety and Judicial Committee, and Substance Responsibility Commission; and president of the St. Philip the Apostle Parish Council. A licensed pharmacist, Veenstra is general manager of Specialty Pharmacy for CVS/Caremark, a past board member of the Illinois Pharmacists Association and a past president of the DuPage Pharmacists Association. A member of the Americans of Italian Descent, …

From a young age, Drew DeSantis, (grandson of the late Anthony DeSantis, founder of Drury Lane dinner theatre) recalls helping his grandfather update the Rolodex, clean banquet chairs and peel carrots in the theater kitchen. It was good, honest work that prepared him to follow the family dream, and prepare it for a robust future. Having recently graduating from the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business with a masters degree, DeSantis serves as the CFO of Drury Lane, where he’s helped produce more than 41 productions. It’s still a family affair; his brother Kyle is Drury Lane’s CEO. And …

As a six year old, Francesco Milioto remembers walking into his bedroom, finding his desk moved, and seeing an upright piano where none had stood before. “It was not something I had asked for. But my father had decided I would take lessons” — and as it turned out, from someone who’d never given lessons before. The gambles of such hopeful parents often end in failure or a child’s disinterest. But in Milioto’s case, it definitely resulted in huge win. Growing up Toronto, he studied his craft extensively at the Royal Conservatory, University of Western Ontario (where hearted a top …

Michael J. Zalewski has served as a member of the Illinois House of Representatives since 2008. Committee assignments include Appropriations – Public Safety; Environment; Health Care Licenses (chairman); Judiciary; Personnel and Pensions; Revenue and Finance (vice chairman). Subcommittee assignments include Real Estate, Property, Probate, Trusts (chairman); Property Tax; and Finance. Last year, he served on a special 10-member conference committee to reform of the state’s pension systems. An attorney concentrating in municipal and county regulatory compliance for the law firm of Krieg DeVault, Zalewski served as a prosecutor in the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office from 2004 to 2007. He …

It’s commonly believed that party music should fold into the background. But singer Patti Lupo deserves (an earns) the attention of those who attend upscale celebrations. Whether she’s performing at a wedding or other noteworthy occasion, or singing Christmas songs as part of The Caroling Party, Lupo displays matchless talent. And remarkably, she’s dedicated it not so much to stardom as making special events shine. Lupo, who has an Italian father and a half-Italian mother, grew up with music all around her. “My [maternal] grandparents sang in church choirs in New York, where my mother grew up,” she says. “My …

This month we highlight the career of a very charismatic, highly respected and active Italian-American community leader: Ronald Oppedisano. A successful property appraiser, Oppedisano is also former elected official, revered and respected in that role, and a wonderful family man. He’s the former president (mayor) of the Village of Norridge, Illinois in Cook County – the small community his parents moved to in 1961 after leaving the 4300 block of West Adams Street in Chicago. Oppedisano began his public service career in 1991 as a member, and later chairman, of the Norridge Zoning Board of Appeals. He was appointed to …

By day, Frank De Vincentis works as a financial advisor. But De Vincentis also has a hobby — and a passion — he hopes to share with others through charity: opera singing. De Vincentis credits his High School best friend for his love for opera and introducing him to the Golden Age of singing. De Vincentis recalls performing from a young age in musical theatre and was later introduced to his best friend’s father and vocal coach: Carl Lawrenz. “I owe a lot of my love of classical musical to Carl.” states De Vincentis, who graduated from DePaul University in …

When Joy Loverde was just 14 years old, she volunteered to help out at a nursing home on Thanksgiving morning. Coming as she did from a loving Italian family, she was shocked by what she saw. “I couldn’t understand why seven people were sitting in the dark with no one around them, when I was going home to a large, wonderful Italian fest,” she recalls. “I thought, ‘Something is terribly wrong here. How could this happen?’” Many years later, Loverde would keep that moment in mind and heart when she wrote “The Complete Eldercare Planner: Where to Start, Questions to …