History & culture

Mother's Day

May 2014 |
My mother, Anna Antonelli LoGrasso, had five sisters and one brother, who died as an infant. My grandmother named each of her daughters after a reigning Queen in Europe: Yolanda, Elisabetta, Aida, Helena, Rena. My grandmother came from Pescara...

A Special Christmas Found in War-Torn Italy

December 2013 |
My most treasured memory dates back to December, 1946. It was this Christmas season that I met my grandparents for the first time. At the time, I was serving in the U.S. Navy and was aboard a ship in the Northern Adriatic, as part of the Allied...

Leopardi, Italy's timeless poet

April 2013 |
Long recognized as Italy's greatest poet of the Romantic age, Giacomo Leopardi (Giacomo Taldegardo Francesco di Sales Saverio Pietro Leopardi,1798-1837) has never ceased to inspire generations of readers with his classically written stanzas. His...

Expanding Italy's Reach

April 2013 |
On January 22, I had the honor of participating in the 70th anniversary commemoration of the allied forces' landing on the shores of Lazio. Standing in the middle of the military cemetery in Nettuno, I felt a strong stir of emotions, reminded of...

Cleveland International Film Festival

March 2013 |
For the past 36 years, the CIFF has been the premier film event in Ohio. Today the CIFF presents more than 170 feature films and over 160 short subject films from at least 60 countries. Nearly 200 filmmakers and other special guests attend the...

Rare Italian masterpieces arrive in Cleveland

March 2013 |
For the "Anno della Cultura Italiana" the Cleveland Museum of Art is doing some big things. Greater Clevelanders are so lucky to have such a prominent art museum filled with some of the world's most celebrated masterpieces. We don't have to...

Buffalo Italian parish to build museum

January 2013 |
The City of Buffalo is moving forward with their Lake Erie waterfront developments and as they proceed, Monsignor Fred R. Voorhes of St. Anthony's Church wishes to recognize the Italian heritage and ancestors who built the foundations of the...

Italian Christmas Traditions

December 2012 |
For Italians, December 25th is without any doubt the most important day on the calendar. Christmas, a day that has mainly a religious meaning, began in Italy around 300 A.D., when Emperor Constantine, after adopting the new faith of Christianity,...

The Presepe Tradition of Naples, Italy

December 2012 |
Christmas in Naples, Italy is truly special particularly since Naples is most famous for its Nativity scenes or presepi. Presepe means crib or crèche and the one place in Naples that is a must-see especially at Christmastime is the famous...
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