L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018 www.italoamericano.org 24 L'Italo-Americano " The first time, my mother brought me here in a stroller," council-member Joe Buscaino recalls dur- ing the Saint Joseph's celebration in San Pedro, a feast that has had a profound meaning for his family for a long time. His grandmother, Rosaria LoGrande, known as nonna Savina, was one of the six Sicilian women mem- bers of the Italian Catholic Feder- ation that, back in 1973 decided to put on a feast like those you find in Sicily. "At the time, the wife of the president of the Catholic Italian Federation was ill and he wanted to do something to help her," Rosalia Orlando tells me. " 'Could you guys put on a feast as they do in Sicily?' he asked these women. One of them was my mother, Paolina Manzel- la from Trappeto, Palermo." This year, March 18th marked the 45th anniversary of this local observance created by Paolina Manzella, along with Josina Machi, Giuseppa LaFata, Rosaria LoGrande, Nunzia D'Orio and Anna Anania, all immigrants from Sicily. "Of the six founders two are still living, but this year in partic- ular we remember our deceased members. The second and third generation, and now even the fourth generation, have taken on this legacy of keeping their par- ents' memory alive in honoring Saint Joseph," Rosalia proudly adds. Shouting "Viva San Giuseppe!" and accompanied by the Los Angeles Italian Brass Band, the Italian-American parishioners who gathered in the church auditorium on a sunny Sunday morning, at around 11.30, took St. Joseph's statue to the nearby Mary Star of the Sea Catholic Church. The parade begun with the band playing the Italian anthem and, right after the mass, the statue was brought back to the auditorium, where food was served. Once there, all participants are greeted by an altar heaped with homemade food. "We have pasta e fagioli, we have calamari fritti, salad, Sicilian cannoli. Free will dona- tions, there's no charge," Giuseppe Orlando tells me, while managing the kitchen to be ready to serve his people. For the large Italian communi- ty in San Pedro, composed main- ly by families of fishermen immi- grated from Europe over the last century, the celebration is an important reminder of this Sicil- ian religious tradition. Every year a young couple is chosen to portray Joseph and Mary, along with a young child portraying Jesus. Together, they lead the procession. In 1980, Rosalia and her husband Giuseppe played Mary and SILVIA GIUDICI The Italian community of San Pedro celebrates St. Josepph and, as the poor and the home- less are more and more in the city, this tradition has gained renewed relevance. "At the time the tradition began, people in Sicily were struggling, there wasn't food, nor water. This was a similar situa- tion to what we see today in Southern California. There are a lot of poor families, some are homeless: honoring St Joseph today reminds us of the impor- tance of helping those in need," Joe Buscaino says. Widely diffused in Sicily, St. Joseph's feasts were in fact pri- marily meant to directly feed the poor, but also to support the parish. Now in Sicily, as well as in Los Angeles, they also func- tion as a way to raise funds for charities. "The money we collect, we give back to the parish and to the elementary school, which belongs to the parish. We give scholarships to the high school for Italian American Catholics who want to pursue an education. If the parish needs anything we contribute. We are totally non- profit. We do it all for generosi- ty, out of our hearts, for Saint Joseph, for the church, to honor our parents, " Rosaria tells me. Beside honoring those who came before, the celebration also wants to teach young children about their culture and about how the tradition itself originat- ed. By doing so, year after year, this tradition is passed on to the new generations. And as kids may not always marry a person of Italian descent, newer family members embrace the tradition fully. "As I young girl, when my mom started this, people used to gather to say the Holy Rosary at my house, so I learned these old Sicilian prayers for Saint Joseph, which I ended up collecting in a little book, lest they were forgot- ten and this culture disappeared." "I believe that's our duty as Italians to carry our culture, our tradition, our heritage forward. Today, while driving down here, I told my son, who's 14, and my daughter, who's 11: "This is going to be your responsibility one day, so that this tradition passes on to your kids and your kids' kids." Buscaino concludes by promising to the Italian commu- nity of San Pedro: "I made a commitment to create an histori- cal little Italy in San Pedro, because we are the largest Italian community in the entire region: we've been working hard to cre- ate an Italian enclave and to cele- brate our culture and heritage. This time next year, we will have a piazza that we will be able to call the central point, the founda- tion of everything Italian in the area. We will welcome every- body from around the region to celebrate who we are, as Ital- ians." Joseph, with their son as Jesus. Later, their son played the role of Joseph and their daughter that of Mary. "Every year we have a group of people who want to be the holy family, with their own family. The third and fourth gen- erations are usually the holy fam- ily, the people who carry the stat- ue are the second generation, who is starting to take over." Rosalia says. "My mother has been very active in this society, as my grandmother was a founding member. Every year we play a part in this important feast: I've played the role of Joseph many times as a kid, growing up," Bus- caino tells me. "My son was Joseph last year, today he carries the American flag. .Today, it's my nephew Massimo who por- trays Joseph, while my daughter is dressed as a Sicilian woman , along with my nephew and my niece." St. Joseph is regarded by many in Sicily as their patron saint and the celebration com- memorates deliverance from a famine and a drought which hit the island during the Middle Ages. St. Joseph's feasts have become a way to carry forward an ancient tradition here in LA LOS ANGELES ITALIAN COMMUNITY Rosalia Orlando at the altar Members of the Italian Catholic Federation The Los Angeles Brass Band at the San Joseph's celebrations in San Pedro

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