Order Sons and Daughters of Italy

For millions of years the Mella River has cut its way through the foothills of the Brescia Alps in Italy. What it has created is the Val Trompia or the Valley of Trompia. With its picturesque towns along the river, it is called the Una Valle di Luci or the Valley of Light..

Bocce is a simple game that finds its roots in ancient Rome and 2,500 years later, it is still popular with people of all ages. The game has been played by emperors, admirals, generals, poets, sculptors, scientists and popes. The name bocce is derived from the Latin bottia, which means boss. From Caesar Augustus to Galileo Galilei, Italians in history have always heralded the sport for its athletic qualities and spirit of competition to rejuvenate the body. It was also thought that playing bocce effectively cured arthritis and rheumatism. #OSDIA #SonsOfItaly #ItalianAmerican #ItalianPride #ItalianHeritage #ItaloAmericano #Italian #Italiano #Italy #Italia #Bocce #BocceBall

Day 29: Grucci Family, Fireworks by Grucci is one of the oldest fireworks companies in America and one of the most respected in the world, for #ItalianAmericanH...eritageMonth. In the late 1800s, Angelo Lanzetta traveled from Bari, Puglia in southern Italy to America, settling on Long Island, NY, and continuing with his trade as a pyrotechnician. He passed his craft along to his son Anthony who trained his cousin, Felix Grucci Sr. Today, Fireworks by Grucci, is one of the oldest fireworks companies in America and one of the most respected in the world. The company provides fireworks for all types of private, public, and corporate events, and each year, Fireworks by Grucci offers a comprehension training program for certification as a Grucci pyrotechnician. In 1929, the family relocated the business to Bellport on the south shore of Long Island. In 1940, Felix married Concetta DiDio, who, along with their three children, James, Donna, and Felix Jr. (and later, Donna’s husband Philip Butler), worked to build their fireworks company. Over the years, Felix Sr. developed a stringless shell which prevented pieces of the fireworks from catching on fire and pyrotechnic simulators and training devices for the U.S. military. The company started using electronic launching in 1977. At the insistence of his son James, Felix Sr. agreed to enter the Monte Carlo International Fireworks Competition in 1979. The rules require that all fireworks must be handmade by each competitor, who must also arrange and complete the firing sequences. The Gruccis, then known as the New York Pyrotechnical Products Company, were awarded the Gold Medal the first entrant from the United States to win the competition. The company, and family, suffered a severe setback in 1983 when an explosion destroyed the Bellport facility and James and another family member were killed. The family was on the verge of closing the business, but thousands of cards and letters, along with keeping the business going in memory of James, convinced them to continue. Two years later, the company, now Fireworks by Grucci, dedicated a new plant on 80 acres in Brookhaven, just a few miles from the Bellport location. Since then the family has provided fireworks for some of the largest and most celebrated worldwide events, among them the Olympic Games including the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, China; Presidential Inaugurations, Centennials, including the Brooklyn Bridge, Queensboro Bridge, and Statue of Liberty; and the opening of the Atlantis Palm in Dubai, billed as the largest fireworks show to date. Phil Grucci, the grandson of Felix Sr., is the fifth generation to join the family business. He started working there in his teens and is currently the President/CEO. [Content Credit: Author, educator, and researcher Janice Therese Mancuso established Thirty-One Days: http://thirtyonedaysofitalians.com/honorary.htm] #Puglia #GrucciFamily #FireworksbyGrucci #LongIsland #Fireworks #Bellport

Day 28: Charles J. Bonaparte, established a special investigative force that became the FBI, for #ItalianAmericanHeritageMonth Born in Baltimore, MD, Bonaparte ...(1851-1921) served as Attorney General during President Theodore Roosevelt’s administration, Bonaparte established a special exploratory force that became the Federal Bureau of Investigation. With a law degree from Harvard University, Bonaparte started a private practice in Maryland in 1874. Shortly after, he became involved in civic reform to promote honesty in government and was the founder of the Reform League of Baltimore and one of the founders of the National Municipal League now the National Civic League and later became its president. Bonaparte was a member of the Indian Rights Association and was a member of the Board of Indian Commissioners. He was Secretary of the United States Navy, and in 1906, he was appointed United States Attorney General, and served until 1906. It was during his term as Attorney General that he initiated the Bureau of Investigation, evolving into the Federal Bureau of Investigation in 1908. Bonaparte was the great grandnephew of Napoleon. To learn about Napolean’s Italian roots, visit: https://bit.ly/34BcnuX. [Content Credit: Author, educator, and researcher Janice Therese Mancuso established Thirty-One Days: http://thirtyonedaysofitalians.com/honorary.htm] #italianamerican #FBI #TeddyRoosevelt #bonaparte #bounaparte #Napolean #AttorneyGeneral #Harvard #baltimore #CharlesBonaparte

Day 27: Constantino (or Costantino) Brumidi for #ItalianAmericanHeritageMonth Known as the "Michelangelo of the Capitol," Brumidi (1805-1880) was born in Rome ...and emigrated to America in 1852. In Rome, he studied art, painted frescoes in several palaces, and was commissioned to work at the Vatican. He lived in New York, then later moved to Washington, D.C. where he offered his services to paint the unadorned walls of the Capitol Building. He started painting the walls and ceilings of the Capitol in the mid-1850s and continued until his death in 1880. When Congress was in session, Brumidi was commissioned to paint frescoes for other buildings, most notably the Stations of the Cross at Church of Our Lady of the Scapular and St. Stephens in New York City. The rotunda of the Capitol, with the Apotheosis of Washington, and the frescoes and murals on the first floor of the Senate wing the Brumidi Corridors are among the most elaborately decorated public places in America. In January 2007, U.S. Senate Bill S.254 was proposed to posthumously award a Congressional Gold Medal to Constantino Brumidi, in recognition of his contributions to America. On July 1, 2008, the bill was signed by the President and became a law. A medal was designed and cast by the U.S. Mint, and a duplicate Bronze Medal was issued in 2008. [Content Credit: Author, educator, and researcher Janice Therese Mancuso established Thirty-One Days: http://thirtyonedaysofitalians.com/honorary.htm]

Day 26: Geraldine Ferraro, the first woman nominated on a major party ticket for Vice President of the United States, for #ItalianAmericanHeritageMonth Born in ...1935 in Newburgh, N.Y., to Italian immigrants, her mother was a seamstress and her father was a restaurant owner. Geraldine Ferraro earned her law degree from Fordham University, one of two women in her graduating class of 1960. She went on to practice civil law while raising three children. She was appointed Queen’s County Assistant District Attorney in 1974 and assigned to newly established Special Victims Bureau. In 1978, Ferraro was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives winning election for two additional terms and earning seats on several congressional committees. During her career, she focused much her legislation on equity for women, especially in wages and pensions. In 1984, Democratic presidential candidate Walter Mondale selected Ferraro to be his running mate. Although they were defeated, Ferraro will ever be remembered as a trailblazer who broke down barriers for women and Americans. Ferraro passed away in 2011. [Content Credit: Author, educator, and researcher Janice Therese Mancuso established Thirty-One Days: http://thirtyonedaysofitalians.com/honorary.htm] NIAF will end Italian American Heritage Month by having the biggest #ItalianAmerican celebration of the year at our 45th Anniversary Gala on October 31! Learn more: https://bit.ly/2YSu1ah. #GeradlineFerraro #NOIAW #NIAF #ItalianAmerican #VPCandidate

Day 25: Amerigo Vespucci, America’s namesake for #ItalianAmericanHeritageMonth Vespucci (c.1451-1512) was born into a wealthy family in Florence and received hi...s education under the tutelage of his uncle, Giorgio Antonio Vespucci, an influential scholar who had established a school for nobles. Amerigo studied language and the physical sciences astronomy, cosmography (maps), and geography that most likely caused an early interest in exploration. The Vespucci family was well established in Florence, founding a hospital and building a church, both still an historic part of the community. The church contains a fresco, Madonna of Mercy, by Domenico Ghirlandaio, that is said to depict members of the Vespucci family including a young Amerigo being protected under the extended arms of the Virgin Mary. After the death of his father, Vespucci’s responsibilities to his family and his family’s connections, earned him a position with the de’ Medici family as a financial manager, first in Florence, then in Spain. By the late 1490s, with news of Columbus’s voyages, Vespucci turned his attention toward exploration. He sailed for Spain and then Portugal, making four voyages between 1497 and 1504. Traveling twice to explore the coastline of South America, Vespucci was the first to realize that the New World was a new continent. His affiliation with the de’ Medici family was well known and letters describing his journeys were widely distributed throughout Europe. Many historians cite both as reasons why leading German cartographer Martin Waldseemuller identified the new continent as America, named after Amerigo, when he created a map of the world in 1507. [Content Credit: Author, educator, and researcher Janice Therese Mancuso established Thirty-One Days: http://thirtyonedaysofitalians.com/honorary.htm] NIAF will end Italian American Heritage Month by having the biggest #ItalianAmerican celebration of the year at our 45th Anniversary Gala on October 31! Learn more: https://bit.ly/2YSu1ah.

Day 24: Robert Mondavi, Greatly influenced the wine industry in America, for #ItalianAmericanHeritageMonth Guided by his passion to integrate the values and tra...ditions of his Italian heritage into the American wine industry, Mondavi (1913-2008) revolutionized it. After years of working in the vineyards and learning about the industry, in 1966 he opened Robert Mondavi Winery to create premium wines and established one of the most recognized vineyards in the world. He introduced old-fashioned wine making techniques to the California wine industry, and changed the production process to create a Sauvignon Blanc Fumé Blanc setting the standard for it in America. Mondavi produced wines using cold fermentation, aging in small barrels, and basket pressing, blending new methods with the old-world techniques, and in 1970 he was one of the first to export California wine. [Content Credit: Author, educator, and researcher Janice Therese Mancuso established Thirty-One Days: http://thirtyonedaysofitalians.com/honorary.htm' Photo Credit: https://rmi.ucdavis.edu/robert-mondavi] NIAF will end Italian American Heritage Month by having the biggest #ItalianAmerican celebration of the year at our 45th Anniversary Gala on October 31! Learn more: https://bit.ly/2YSu1ah. #RobertMondavi #Wine #Californiawine #California #vineyard #mondavi

Spotlight Saturday!

Day 23: Sabato Rodia, creator and builder of Watts Towers, for #ItalianAmericanHeritageMonth Also known as Sam and Simon, Rodia (1879-1965) was the creator and ...builder of Watts Towers, a series of spires and sculptures made from steel rods, wire, and mortar, and embellished with pieces of glass, pottery, tiles, seashells, and other materials. The towers, two reaching almost 100 feet tall, and other artwork took 33 years to complete and is considered an engineering masterpiece and one of the best examples of folk art in America. He worked without design plans, using just hand tools, and when the spires became too tall, Rodia used a window washer’s belt to climb them. He collected his materials from along the railroad tracks, the broken pieces of tiles from his day job, and even paying the neighborhood children to bring him the objects he would place into the cement to create the mosaic designs. Rodia wanted to create something as memorable as the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Rodia’s birthplace of Ribottoli (a locality in the city of Serino, province of Avellino, region of Campania) is not too far from Nola, a town that has been celebrating Festa del Gigli, honoring the safe return of their bishop, more than 2,000 years ago. The festival, a major event, is highlighted by decorative obelisks, over 80 feet high, and a boat that are paraded through the town. The obelisks are remarkably similar to Rodia’s spires and the inclusion of a boat leads many to believe that Rodia was influenced by this annual event. When Rodia was finished, he deeded the property to a neighbor and walked away. Watts Towers is 17 pieces of art three tall spires, two close to 100 feet tall, six smaller spires, a boat, a gazebo, and other objects interconnected with bands of concrete-reinforced and decorated steel. It has been recognized as the largest piece of artwork created by one person, as the longest slender reinforced concrete column in the world, and as a unique work of vernacular architecture. It is a National Historic Landmark and a State of California Historic Park and Historic Cultural Monument. The Towers are also the site of the annual Simon Rodia Watts Towers Jazz Festival, established in 1976; and in 1981, the Day of the Drum Festival was added to the annual event. In the DVD I Build the Tower, the story of the towers and Rodia, R. Buckminster Fuller said Sam will rank, not just in our century, but rank with sculptors in all history. [Credit: Author, educator, and researcher Janice Therese Mancuso established Thirty-One Days: http://thirtyonedaysofitalians.com/honorary.htm]

Day 22: The Jacuzzi Family (1900s-present) for #ItalianAmericanHeritageMonth After migrating with their family to California from Italy in the early 1900s, the ...seven Jacuzzi brothers, mechanics by trade, produced aircraft equipment and created the first closed cabin monoplane. An airplane accident changed the direction of the company, and some of the brothers began making hydraulic pumps for irrigation; another started a vineyard. In 1947, Candido Jacuzzi developed a hydrotherapy pump placed into the tub to circulate the water to aid his son’s treatment for Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis (learn more about the family and the birth of the Jacuzzi tub and hydromassage: https://en.jacuzzi.eu/jacuzzi-world/history). In 1966, he enclosed the pump, making the first whirlpool tub. The family sold the whirlpool business in 1979. Jacuzzi Inc. today is the world's largest manufacturer of whirlpool baths, with which its name has become synonymous. [Credit: Author, educator, and researcher Janice Therese Mancuso established Thirty-One Days: http://thirtyonedaysofitalians.com/honorary.htm]

Day 21: Arturo Toscanini, one of the world’s greatest orchestra conductors for #ItalianAmericanHeritageMonth. More than 50 years after his final performance, Ar...turo Toscanini (1867-1957) known for his photographic memory, strong beliefs in music interpretation, and demand for perfection reigns supreme as one of the world’s greatest conductors. From 1908 to 1915, he conducted at the Metropolitan Opera House. In 1926, he began conducting with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra and led a European tour of the company in 1930. Seven years later, with plans to make radio educational and cultural, the NBC Symphony Orchestra was created for Toscanini. Many credit him today for bringing classical music to the masses. NIAF will end Italian American Heritage Month by having the biggest #ItalianAmerican celebration of the year at our 45th Anniversary Gala on October 31! Learn more: https://bit.ly/2YSu1ah. [Credit: Author, educator, and researcher Janice Therese Mancuso established Thirty-One Days: http://thirtyonedaysofitalians.com/honorary.htm] #ArturoToscanini #Conductor #ClassicalMusic

Day 20: Mario Lanza, famed tenor for #ItalianAmericanHeritageMonth Often cited as an inspiration for singers today, Mario Lanza (1921-1959) was one of the top ...recording artists of the early 1950s. Praised for his voice and labeled both the new Caruso and the most famous tenor in the world, Lanza was also a popular film star. Born in Philadelphia to immigrant parents from Abruzzo and Molise, Alfredo Arnold Cocozza took his stage name in tribute to his mother, Maria Lanza. Lanza had an early interest in music, listening to and singing along with the recordings of Enrico Caruso. In his late teens, he began singing professionally, and at 21, he sang in his first opera; but World War II caused an interruption in his career. Joining Special Services, he performed in variety shows for the troops. After the war, he sang with the NBC Symphony Orchestra and performed live in a series of appearances on the radio show, Great Moments in Music. He continued with his vocal studies and toured North America for almost one year. His performance at the Hollywood Bowl in 1947 led to a seven-year movie contract with MGM, and he continued singing performing in several operas and recording albums while he made films. His first film was an instant success, followed by another and in 1951, he played the lead role of his idol in The Great Caruso, the highest-grossing film that year. The following year, he parted with MGM, but because of contract obligations his voice was used for the songs in The Student Prince. His recordings sold millions and he received 12 Gold Record Awards. In 1957, Lanza and his family moved to Italy, where he played the lead in the film Seven Hills in Rome, released the following year. During filming, he also toured Great Britain and Eastern Europe on a concert tour. Throughout his film career, Lanza had health issues that affected his performances and relationships. In 1959, Lanza died of (what appears to be) heart complications. In 1961, the mayor of Philadelphia proclaimed October 6th, the day Lanza died, as Mario Lanza Day; a park is also named in his honor. The Mario Lanza Institute Scholarship Program was established in 1962 to fulfill one of Lanza’s dreams, and over 200 scholarships have been awarded. Each year, the awards ceremony concludes at the Mario Lanza Ball. NIAF will end Italian American Heritage Month by having the biggest #ItalianAmerican celebration of the year at our 45th Anniversary Gala on October 31! Learn more: https://bit.ly/2YSu1ah. [Credit: Author, educator, and researcher Janice Therese Mancuso established Thirty-One Days: http://thirtyonedaysofitalians.com/honorary.htm]