Giovanni Insolia grew up in Solarino, a small Sicilian town in the province of Siracusa. One of six children born to Paolo and Sebastiana Teodoro Insolia, he was surrounded by extended family throughout his childhood.

Insolia’s father made very little money as the town barber, in most cases receiving goods like wheat in exchange for his services. When his family emigrated to Chicago under the sponsorship of an uncle, Insolia wasn’t thrilled about leaving. “When you’re a teenager, it’s really a shocker,” he recalls.