WELCOME LOUISA ZÉLIE LLOYD
AMHS Board Member Lana Nardella proudly announces the birth of her 11th grandchild, Louisa Zélie Lloyd, on January 4, 2014. Louise is Lana’s 11th grandchild! Tanti auguri a tutta la famiglia Nardella!
A CELEBRATION OF LOVE
Our young member Mike DeBonis and Dena Iverson were married on February 15 at the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church, in Washington, DC. The elegant marriage ceremony was followed by a black-tie reception at the Washington Hotel. 5 Italian confetti were passed out during the festivities and were enjoyed by all. Confetti, or Jordan almonds, are mandatory at weddings in Italy. The ones handed out at Mike and Dena’s wedding were particularly special not just because they were manufactured in Sulmona, L’Aquila, the capital of confetti production, but because they had been purchased last summer in Sulmona by Mike’s parents, Sheila and Tony, when they were attending a family reunion.
Mike is a graduate of Georgetown University and Dena of Oberlin College. Currently Mike is a reporter on local politics and government for the Washington Post and Dena is a Public Affairs Specialist at the U.S. Department of Justice. The newlywed met when Dena was working as Communication Specialist and Press Secretary at the Executive Office of the Mayor of Washington, DC, and Mike was reporting for the Post. The couple will live in the District. We wish them ogni bene e felicità. Mike participates frequently in our Society’s general meetings; many of us remember seeing him enjoying the food served there. It reminds him of the cooking of his grandmother Isabella who came from Secinaro, L’Aquila. (submitted by Omero Sabatini)
JOE GRANO: REMEMBERING A LIFE WELL LIVED
On Sunday, January 19, 2014 at 6:00 p.m., more than 160 people gathered in Casa Italiana to celebrate the life of Joe Grano. It was a moving and fitting tribute to a man who worked tirelessly on causes that were important to the Italian American Community and to the city in which he lived and worked for so long, Washington, DC. Two members of Congress were in attendance, including DC Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton and Senator Peter Strauss (a “shadow” Senator for DC); DC Council Chair Phil Mendelsohn and Ward 3 DC Councilmember Mary Cheh. Very poignant eulogies were given by Delegate Norton and Phil Mendelsohn; long-time friends and the President of the Rhodes Tavern of Historical Society of DC, Nelson Rimensnyder; Association of Oldest Inhabitants of DC (AOI) President Bill Brown; AMHS Immediate Past President Dick DiBuono (see his eulogy, to follow); and The Lido Civic Club of Washington, DC President, Francesco Isgro. Joe’s cousins Cindy Zietzler and Dennis Bonanno provided remembrances of Joe which were read by me on behalf of the family. One of Joe’s dearest friends, Bill Rice, prepared a wonderful video tribute that captured highlights of Joe’s life, from his time as a young boy in New York, to his various activist causes in DC. Dear friends of Joe later paid personal tributes to Joe. AMHS member Lourdes Tinajero did a very kind gesture for the family, in securing a United States flag that was hung over the U.S. Capitol at the request of Maryland Senator Barbara Mikulski.
There were wonderful pictorials and other memorabilia that allowed all in attendance to see the impact of Joe’s life in the Washington, DC and Italian American communities. Following the service, everyone enjoyed a light reception and the opportunity to talk together and to share personal remembrances of Joe. Never had I seen such evidence of the love shared for a man who had an impact on so many lives. To Joe, we are forever grateful for the path you set us on and in your memory, may we continue to fight for the causes most dear to you.
To quote Isla Paschal Richardson, “Grieve not, nor speak of me with tears, but laugh and talk of me as if I were beside you. I loved you so—‘twas heaven here with you.” AMHS is incredibly grateful to Father Ezio Marchetto, Pastor of Holy Rosary Church, for scheduling the service, and to all who worked with me on the planning committee: from AMHS, Dick DiBuono and Nancy DeSanti; from AOI, Bill Brown, Bill Rice and Nelson Rimensnyder; from the Italian Cultural Society, Arrigo Mongini; from The Lido Civic Club, Francesco Isgro; and Teri Malvez, friend of Joe who printed the graphic easel boards and the programs. We are also thankful to AMHS members Lynn Sorbara and Peter Bell for taking care of hospitality for the event. It was Joe’s wishes to be buried alongside his parents in Force, Pennsylvania. A funeral Mass will be held there, sometime in Spring (probably in May), and Joe’s family hopes that some of us will be able to attend. There will also be a service at the Church of the Annunciation in Washington, DC on April 6 (details to follow). (submitted by Maria D’Andrea)
JOSEPH N. GRANO
A Eulogy
by
Richard J. DiBuono
God smiled down on me the day I first met Joe Grano, a wonderful man who soon thereafter became my good and dear friend. God smiled down again on me and my fellow members of the Abruzzo and Molise Heritage Society the day, a little more than three years ago, when Joe agreed to serve as a member of our Society’s Board of Directors.
This event did not happen without a lot of persuasion for Joe had made it clear that, while he did join organizations of interest to him, such as our Society, he didn’t fancy being involved in their 6 administration and management. Persisting in my appeal to him, he finally relented. I could not have been more pleased and as it turned out the Society could not have found a better person to serve on its Board. Nobody I know has had a greater passion for celebrating the contributions of Italians and Italian Americans to our nation and the world than did Joe. Even before joining our Society he had succeeded in leading the effort to convince the U.S. Congress to pass legislation awarding Constantino Brumidi, the famed Italian American painter of the Capitol’s interior, a Congressional Gold Medal. Joe, with the help of some of his closest friends, who are here today, also eulogizing him, mastered and executed the very complicated and involved processes of shepherding a bill through both houses of our Congress. That was a major achievement for which he deserves the major credit.
Joe must have maintained a calendar of the dates of birth, death or significant achievement of each and every important Italian and Italian American, for he initiated efforts to seek official recognition by our Congress for such prominent individuals as Galileo, Palladio, Brumidi and others on such anniversaries, a hundred or hundreds of years later. He would send out letters to all the prominent national and regional Italian American organizations seeking their support in getting Congress to pass resolutions or even for a luncheon at Casa Italiana to honor them on those occasions. Some of you may recall attending such a luncheon honoring Brumidi in 2010 on the 205th anniversary of his birth and then following Joe up to the painter’s grave in Glenwood Cemetery to pay our respects. He arranged a similar event some years earlier, but I cannot recall for which Brumidi anniversary it was.
I assure you, that until I met Joe, I never even once envisioned myself taking part in such a situation. Joe had that special quality whereby he could excite you into action in support of one or more of his many causes. His enthusiasm was infectious and, of course, his causes were ones that no proud Italian American would consider not supporting. In, 2011, his first year as a director of our Society, he suggested we lead an effort to celebrate Andrea Palladio’s achievements. So, under the combined sponsorship of the Italian Cultural Society, the Lido Civic Club, the Italian Cultural Institute and our Abruzzo and Molise Heritage Society a wonderful presentation by Dr. Calder Loth on the life and achievements of Palladio was conducted at the Embassy of Italy.
Until I met Joe and falling into his thrall, I never once envisioned myself holding banners promoting a cause in front of the U.S. Capitol….but because he asked me to do so, I did. He convinced me and many of our Society’s members to do just that. Many of you here today probably did so, too. Standing with or holding beautiful banners that Joe had had prepared, we promoted the celebration by the Congress of Italy’s 150th anniversary of its unification and we promoted that the Congress hold a ceremony posthumously awarding Brumidi’s Congressional Gold Medal in the Rotunda of the Capitol, beneath the man’s greatest achievement, his painting of the Apotheosis of George Washington. Yes, Joe’s enthusiasm for good causes was infectious….very infectious.
On a personal level, I enjoyed any and all time I shared with Joe. He made a wonderful companion, for conversations with him were always enlightening and positive in nature. Frequently, after our Society’s evening Board of Directors meetings, I would go out of my way (I live in Alexandria) to drive him to his home up past the National Cathedral off Wisconsin Avenue. Joe did not own a car. I don’t even know if he knew how to drive. So driving him from here up Massachusetts Avenue gave us time to talk about many matters, especially those of interest to him.
I felt honored when he would seek my counsel on a matter he was wrestling with. And, of course, I sought his counsel on matters, too. Once we reached Wisconsin Avenue I would invite Joe to join me for a late repast at my favorite restaurant in D.C., Café Deluxe. We then would extend our time together in wonderful conversation over food and drink, although Joe partook little of either, given the hour. Yes, he was a fine companion. My most cherished memory of time spent with Joe is the two or so hours I spent with him -- just the two of us -- in his room at George Washington University Hospital on what I think was the Saturday before his death.
He was being treated for his newly discovered diabetes and for the serious infection it had precipitated in his blood stream. Joe was sitting up and in good spirits, expecting that he would be released to a rehabilitation clinic in just a matter of days. We talked of many matters. One subject we discussed during this time together, one I never before had broached with him, was his marital history. I asked if he had ever been married. He replied he had not. What he divulged was that he once had been deeply in love with a fellow schoolteacher back in New York City, but that their relationship ended, sadly for him. There never was to be another woman in his life after that. He was, he said, a one-woman man. That visit was precipitated by Joe calling me from his bed at the hospital and leaving a message on my answering machine asking me to visit him. I have left his recorded voice on that machine as a precious memory of him. Heaven is richer for Joe’s passing, but we, my good friends, are the poorer for it.
FAREWELL TO FATHER LYDIO
The farewell dinner for Father Lydio Tomasi was a sold-out affair at Casa Italiana, with over 150 parishioners and friends gathering to honor Father Lydio on Saturday evening, February 8, 2014. As we have known for a few weeks, Father Lydio is leaving Holy Rosary to return to the Center for Migration Studies in New York to continue his important work there and to help celebrate the Center’s 50th anniversary. He left February 15 and will be living in Greenwich Village. Anita McBride, the mistress of ceremonies, talked about Father Lydio’s life, from his early years and education in Italy, his first posting in the U.S. at Staten Island, and his years at the Center for Migration Studies in New York City before coming to Holy Rosary in 2006. AMHS member Francesco Isgrò elaborated on the importance of Father Lydio’s work on migration studies.
Francesco himself is Senior Litigation Counsel, Office of Immigration Litigation, U.S. Department of Justice, and he said that anyone working on immigration reform must be familiar with Father Lydio’s work - that’s just how important it has been. He noted that Father Lydio, who has a Ph.D. in sociology, has written many books and scholarly articles on migration that are widely respected by sociologists. In addition, Daniel Stabile spoke about how Father Lydio played a key role in COPILAS to spread the study of the Italian language and culture. But he also called him a friend, and the kind of priest “you could have a couple glasses of wine with and confess your sins.” He then gave Father Lydio an award in the shape of a globe which he said symbolized how Father Lydio’s work has had an impact on the world. Father Lydio received several standing ovations. He thanked everyone at Holy Rosary and ended by saying, “If I have offended anyone, please forgive me, and please pray for me.” Father Ezio Marchetto, the current pastor of Holy Rosary Church, noted that he has known Father Lydio since 1977; they even worked together at the Center for Migration Studies. He noted how Father Lydio has worked closely with such groups as The Lido Civic Club and the Abruzzo and Molise Heritage Society.
Father Ezio called his predecessor a humble man who really embodies the qualities of a good Christian. A delicious dinner was catered by Il Canale, whose owner, Giuseppe (Joe) Farruggio, was in the audience. Before the dinner, guests enjoyed wine, prosecco and antipasti. Since Father Lydio’s birthday was February 6, the crowd sang happy birthday to him and then helped eat his birthday cake. All in all, the evening was a wonderful tribute to Father Lydio and a good reminder that Holy Rosary is indeed a family. (submitted by Nancy DeSanti)