Hall of fame coach Rick Pitino honored at Queens Community House fall Gala, raises over $600K
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer and St. John’s University Men’s Basketball Head Coach Rick Pitino was honored at the Queens Community House (QCH) Annual Fall Gala held on Wednesday, Oct. 9 at the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria, the event brought together business leaders, public servants, and community supporters to celebrate QCH’...
Retired Italian teacher honored as ‘2024 Person of the Year’in Amherst, NY
Peter LoJacono has spent his lifetime promoting Italian heritage and culture in Western New York. He was honored Sunday night at Classics V Banquet Center by his fellow Italian Americans as their “2024 Person of the Year.” LoJacono is president of the Federation of Italian-American Societies of Western New York, which supports the work of more than...
Columbus Day Parade celebrates Italian-American heritage in Astoria
The 47th annual Columbus Day Parade marched through the streets of Astoria this past Saturday, celebrating Italian-American heritage. Organized by the Federation of Italian-American Organizations of Queens (FIAOQ), the event brought together local dignitaries, community members, and cultural performers. The parade began at Kaufman Astoria Studios o...
Columbus Day Parade Celebrates 80th Year of Italian Pride in Manhattan
The 80th Annual Columbus Day Parade took place on Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue on Monday, Oct. 14, but the Diocese of Brooklyn put its stamp on the event in a big way. The grand marshal, Michael T. Strianese, is a graduate of two schools in the diocese — Xaverian High School in Bay Ridge and St. John’s University in Jamaica. “It’s a great day for Itali...
Bronx celebrates Columbus Day with annual parade in Morris Park
The Morris Park Community Association hosted the 47th annual Bronx Morris Park Columbus Day Parade on Sunday, Oct. 13. The parade, which ran through Morris Park Avenue, featured Bronx Chamber of Commerce Chair Anthony Mormile as Grand Marshal and Bronx author and educator Tony Morante as Honorary Marshal. This celebration of Italian-American herita...
Christen Visceglie to be Honored by Italian American Heritage Society of Long Island
Christen Visceglie, a longtime leader of the Long Island chapter of the American Association of Teachers of Italian, is the latest to be announced as an honoree of the Italian American Heritage Society of Long Island. Tickets and sponsorships are available for the event now. Visceglie is a dedicated Italian educator at Manhasset Secondary School, p...
Gno kidding! How gnocchi became like Chipotle as the hottest grab-and-go food in NYC
New York is a paradise of quick bites, from world-class pizza slices to hot dogs with all the trimmings, but a really good plate of pasta is typically reserved for a nice night out at an Italian restaurant. However, with the cost of dining out higher than ever, big eaters in the Big Apple no longer have to book a table. These days, you can find som...
Giorgio Armani, 90, Is Opening a New Restaurant on Madison Avenue to Celebrate Beautiful Food
For Giorgio Armani, style goes beyond fashion. It is but one expression, and food is another. Just two decades after debuting his fashion label in Milan in 1975, Armani opened his first restaurant in Paris, the entrée to an epicurean empire that now serves carefully considered Italian cuisine in such glittering cities as Dubai, Milan, and Tokyo. T...
A Chance In Life’s 79th Gala in Neverland Raises $560,000 For Lost Children
Far from the traffic, the lights, and the noise of New York City, for one night, on the occasion of A Chance in Life‘s 79th Gala, Cipriani 25 Broadway’s great hall was set with the magic of Peter Pan’s Neverland. “It is the place where lost boys and girls find hope, love, and a supportive community like ours,” said Gabriele Delmonaco, President and...
Working to promote Italian culture in Western New York
Italian American Heritage Month is at the center of this weekend’s conversation on In Focus. JoDee Kenney welcomed in Lianna Tatman, executive director, Centro Culturale Italiano di Buffalo, established in 2010 to promote Italian culture in Western New York. At its building on Delaware Avenue, CCI Buffalo offers Italian language and cooking classes...
St. John’s — New York’s largest Catholic university — has canceled ‘Columbus Day’
St. John’s — New York’s largest Catholic university — has gone woke and no longer refers to Monday’s holiday as “Christopher Columbus Day’’ in honor of the explorer hailed as a devout Christian. Some Italian-American civic leaders and alumni are now ripping the Catholic institution for dissing the famous but controversial Italian explorer. “To not...
A conversation on Italian American Heritage Month
This weekend on In Focus, we open a conversation on Italian American Heritage Month and the achievements and contributions of Italian Americans across Upstate New York. JoDee Kenney sits down with Watervliet Mayor Charles Patricelli, who raised the Italian flag this past week in the city. Patricelli said Italian American Heritage Month is just one...