L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2018 www.italoamericano.org 32 L'Italo-Americano T he first weekend in October will be very busy for locals and visitors in San Fran- cisco. While the Ma- rina will welcome the San Fran- cisco Fleet Week - a celebration of the Bay Area naval tradition, honoring men and women serving in our armed forces - the North Beach neighborhood will host, once again, the oldest Italian Her- itage Parade of the United States. The parade, taking place on Sun- day October 7th, usually lasts around three hours and approxi- mately 150,000 people are ex- pected. For those who are not familiar with Italian traditions around the Bay Area, it will be interesting to know how not only is the Italian Heritage Parade the city's oldest civic event, but it's also the nation's oldest Italian American Parade, dating back to 1868. That was also the time when thousands of Italian immigrants found themselves without the riches they had an ticipated, whereas many other were desti- tute and in need of assistance. Nicola Larco, the wealthiest member of the Italian Colony of San Francisco, thought of pro- viding relief to those people and founded La Società Italiana di Mutua Beneficenza. It ended up being the first and largest mutual benefit society in San Francisco and, today, it's the oldest Italian organization in the United States. Ten years later, after he retired from La S ocietà Italiana di Mutua Beneficenza, Mr Larco established San Francisco's First Columbus Day Celebration: it marked the moment during which Italian-Americans gath- SERENA PERFETTO San Francisco celebrates Italian heritage, traditions, and history in a full weekend of events brate San Francisco Bay Area business, community groups, and Italian organizations, as well as noted Italian-Americans, local high school Italian clubs and marching bands. One of the parade's focal points is for sure Queen Isabella and her Court, an outstanding Italian-American young woman who represents the ideals of the community for an entire year. Hard work, family and religion, and a love of life are what a panel of judges look for when it comes to choose Queen Isabella. They usually look for poise, personality, grace, community involvement, and pride in her heritage. The Parade begins at 12:30 pm at the foot of Jefferson and Powell Streets in Fisherman's Wharf, proceeds south through North Beach on Columbus Avenue, and ends in Washington Square in front of Saints Peter and Paul Church. For those around the Civic Centre area, the City Hall will be lit in the Italian color flag on Sunday night, in honor of Italian American contri- butions to San Francisco. For people who cannot attend the parade, there is a moment of celebration the night before at the Grand Ball and Banquet at the Palace Hotel, whereas a din- ner party will be hosted by the San Francisco Italian Athletic Club at 6pm on Sunday. ered in San Francisco to hold a parade and honor their accom- plis hments and remember Christopher Columbus. The first parade took place in downtown San Francisco, featur- ing bands and marching units of Italian fraternal organizations, such as the Garibaldi Guard, Swiss Guards, and Lafayette Guards. In the middle of the cen- tury (1942), the celebration became part of a non-profit cor- poration known as "Columbus Day Celebration, Inc.," whereas, in 1994, it turned into the Italian Heritage Parade following the effort to celebrate the accom- plishments and the culture of all Italians and Italian-Americans. As explained by Joe D'A- lessandro, CEO of SF Travel since 2006, "The Parade has a long history representing the Ital- ian community of today, as well as the historical community and its contribution to the growth of San Francisco, the Bay Area, and California overall." And he con- tinues: "The true significance of the Parade is to share the Italian heritage, story, and culture. Nev- ertheless, sometimes there is a risk they are forgotten by the new Italian-American genera- tions, unless we do something to have them remembered. That's why the parade and the whole celebration are great moments to remind our roots and the origins of our families." Why is this moment so unique? Mr D'A- lessandro cannot underline enough how "this is a moment to be proud of the culture and the traditions. Yet, when such events happen, they help people keep the heritage alive. The parade is a fun and enjoyable festival, and this year's expectations are very high as we celebrate the 150th anniversary." From a touristic perspective, the Parade will hap- pen in the same weekend as other events, like the Fleet week, and there's such a synergy in San Francisco, as proven by sold out hotels and the benefits coming for restaurants and businesses around the city. "What happens in San Francisco", Mr D'A- lessandro states, "is at least unusual when compared to other communities, where the tradition of the parade ended some time ago. Here, instead, we have new generations of Italians who come to work in tech and share their knowledge, but they are keen on keeping the heritage and their traditions alive." In a message sent to the com- munity, Italian Ambassador Armando Varricchio recalls how "there are many important rea- sons to be proud of the Italian heritage in this part of America." Italian Consul General in San Francisco, Lorenzo Ortona, tells L'Italo Americano: "I am partic- ipating in the 2018 celebrations of the Italian Heritage Parade rejoicing for all the extraordinary achievements obtained by the Italian American community of San Francisco and the Bay area, and embracing the new immigra- tion of Italians coming to this part of the world with a similar spirit. It is a particularly impor- tant milestone that we celebrate this year, let us highlight the con- tribution of Italian Americans to this great country and join the festivities of the Italian heritage parade underlining its spirit of inclusiveness and, in particular this year, celebrate in unity among all communities." The handcrafted floats cele- 150.000 people are expected in San Francisco during the weekend SAN FRANCISCO ITALIAN COMMUNITY Many organizations take part to the parade which last around 3 hours

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