[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 92 (Wednesday, May 26, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Page S3498]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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             CENTENNIAL OF GAGLIANO'S ITALIAN MARKET & DELI

 Mr. BENNET. Madam President it is my honor to congratulate 
Gagliano's Italian Market & Deli on 100 years of successful 
entrepreneurship founded in culture, community, and family in Pueblo, 
CO. The Gagliano's story is one of multigenerational immigrant success 
and a heartening example of the American dream.
  Giuseppe Gagliano, known as Joe, left Italy in 1918. The promise of 
steel mill work and American opportunity drew him to Pueblo. Maria 
Carmella DeAngelo--his neighbor from the farmlands just outside of 
Palermo in Lucca, Sicily--followed him and they were married in 1920. 
Soon, they had their first child, Rose. In 1921, however, a 
catastrophic flood destroyed their first home. Later, they lost their 
second child, Francis, to illness. Despite these tragedies, the 
Gaglianos persisted in finding opportunity.
  Joe began the family's legacy of entrepreneurship by saving enough 
money selling milk from his cow before and after his shifts at the 
mill. Later that year, he used $300 in savings to buy the empty lot 
next to their new Elm Street home to build an attached store.
  Joe and Maria Gagliano's market stocked a wide variety of sought-
after Italian foods and specialties that became popular with Pueblo's 
diverse immigrant community. Carmella soon developed the recipe for her 
classic Italian sausage that quickly became a mainstay of the business. 
While they nurtured their entrepreneurial success, they showed 
compassion to customers during the Great Depression by never pursuing 
unpaid debts under the interest free credit they offered. The Gaglianos 
and their extended family who helped to run the store also took pride 
in their hard work to become U.S. citizens.
  The Gagliano's story shows the great power of family bonds with four 
generations having owned and operated the store, cultivating both its 
historic identity and its business growth over the decades. Founders 
Joe and Carmella Gagliano passed away in 1966 and 1992, respectively. 
In 1994, Joe and Rose (Gagliano) Cortese retired from the business. 
Their successors in owning and operating the store are Tony Gagliano, 
the nephew of original founder Joe, along with his wife Josephine and 
children, Bonnie and Vince.
  I am grateful to commemorate this special moment that is a living 
reflection of the American dream. I wish for a pleasant community 
celebration of this milestone in Pueblo on June 26, 2021, as well. May 
the Gagaliano family and their Italian Market & Deli take pride in 
their century of success and find many more years of prosperity and 
health to come.

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