L'Italo-Americano

L'Italo-Americano THURSDAY, AUGUST 21, 2025 www.italoamericano.org 6 NEWS & FEATURES TOP STORIES PEOPLE EVENTS started a tournament this year. W h a t ' s t h e r o l e o f women been in the Soci- ety's history? Women have always been at the heart of this place. There was a formal women's auxiliary, and they handled nearly everything behind the scenes, even if the official t i t l e s o n t h e w a l l w e n t t o men. Today, we still honor that spirit: we now have 21 a c t i v e c o m m i t t e e s , m a n y inspired by the past. Before t h e p a n d e m i c , a g r o u p o f w o m e n , i n c l u d i n g J a n i c e Ventura, who were part of multi-generational families in the Society, realized we needed to plan for the future. That included opening mem- bership to people outside the I t a l i a n c o m m u n i t y . W e b e g a n r e a c h i n g o u t t o y o u n g e r g e n e r a t i o n s a n d e m b r a c i n g c h a n g e w h i l e honoring tradition. You are a chef with an Italian background. How do you bring your knowl- edge to La Garibaldina? I trained with chefs from various culinary traditions: V i e t n a m e s e , K o r e a n , M e d i t e r r a n e a n a n d t h e n realized that few people here r e a l l y k n o w w h a t S i c i l i a n h o m e c o o k i n g i s . N o t t h e restaurant version, but the food people actually eat at home. That's what I grew up w i t h . I b u i l t m y b u s i n e s s around traditional Sardinian and Sicilian food. My grand- mother lives in Sardinia, so I've spent time there, too. I also studied anthropology, and I try to bring that into my culinary practice under- standing how dishes travel, e v o l v e , a n d h o l d c u l t u r a l meaning. For instance, we did a workshop on fregola, which is like couscous but made differently in Sardinia than in Sicily. Everything I do has a California sensibili- ty: good ingredients, simple preparation. It's a shared philosophy with Mediter - ranean food cultures: let the ingredients speak. W h a t g i v e s y o u t h e most satisfaction in your work here? Being part of this commu- n i t y h a s g i v e n m e a p r o - found appreciation for how c u l t u r e e v o l v e s . I ' v e m e t people from all walks of life who feel connected, some- times newly, to their Italian roots. I've watched members reflect on recipes and tradi- tions that go back to before World War II. Seeing people bring in their grandparents' handwritten cookbooks is incredibly moving. Any recipe you came across here that really stuck with you? A woman from Friuli told me her grandmother used to make a tomato sauce with a cinnamon stick. That fasci- nated me. It made sense. Friuli is close to trade routes from the East, but it's not s o m e t h i n g m o s t p e o p l e associate with Italian food. Discovering things like that is what excites me most. W h a t ' s o n e u n i q u e event that you organize? Vendemmia, our grape harvest celebration, is really special. We do it every Sep- tember as a dinner dance e v e n t . M e m b e r s b r i n g i n b u c k e t s o f g r a p e s , s o m e from their gardens and we do symbolic grape stomping. It's a beautiful, joyful gather- ing. We've partnered with San Antonio Winery, which has a long Italian American history in Los Angeles. In fact, our relationship with them likely goes back to the 1800s, given that we were founded in 1877. Even before we built this current build- ing, when we were meeting in different halls, we were serving San Antonio wine. We still feature their wine at our events alongside others, but that legacy matters. It ties us to LA's broader Ital- ian history. In what ways does La Garibaldina open up to other cultures? We make space for what's meaningful to our members; including things you might not expect at an Italian soci- ety. For example, we have C o u n t r y W e s t e r n n i g h t s , which are very popular. That might sound surprising, but it makes sense in the context of California's history. Many o f t h e I t a l i a n s w h o c a m e here in the 1800s weren't just immigrants, they were t r a n s m i g r a n t s , p e o p l e drawn to the West with a kind of pioneer, cowboy spir- it. Coming to Los Angeles in 1877 wasn't the same as set- tling in New York or Chica- go. It attracted people who were adventurous and bold. In a way, that Country West- ern spirit still reflects the e n e r g y o f o u r f o u n d i n g members. Is there anything from the past that you'd love to bring back? Y e s , t h e r e u s e d t o b e someone called the "Sun- s h i n e L a d y . " I ' d l o v e t o revive that role. From what I understand, she sent out get- well cards, birthday greet- ings, all those small, caring gestures that help maintain t h e f a b r i c o f a c l o s e - k n i t c o m m u n i t y . W e l o v e o u r members deeply, and I can see why they had someone dedicated to that. It's some- thing we want to reintro- duce. "La Garibaldina is made by its members, old and new, and they're the ones reminding us of the traditions," says Amanda Lanza, current president of the society, which was founded in 1877. CONTINUED FROM PAGE 4 Bocce games are among the many activities to be practiced at La Garibaldina (Photo: Nick Walker) La Garibaldina's dance hall (Photo courtesy of La Garibaldina Society)

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