[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 217 (Thursday, December 16, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S9251-S9253]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
CELEBRATING ITALIANS IN VERMONT
Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, those who know me, and even those who
don't, are well aware of the pride I have in my Italian heritage. My
maternal grandparents emigrated from the Friuli region of Italy, coming
to South Ryegate, VT, to work in the granite quarries. Since the 1880s,
many Italians have followed this same immigration pattern, settling
across Vermont, where the beautiful hills and lakes remind them of
their ancestral home. Today, Vermont boasts a strong community of
Italian Americans, many of whom, including me, are members of the
Vermont Italian Cultural Association, VICA. Led by President Lisa
DeNatale, the association preserves and promotes Italian culture in
Vermont, hosting language and travel groups, presentations, movies,
cooking classes, luncheons, and bocce socials. Last year, Marcelle and
I were delighted to join VICA and Trattoria Delia for a virtual wine-
tasting. Joining with dear friends online helped us, like so many
Vermonters, get through the earliest and harder months of the pandemic.
It is nearly impossible to travel across our State without seeing the
influence of the Italian-American community. In Northfield, the streets
outside of La Panciata smell of Carrara, Italy, where founder Glenn
Loati learned the ancient art of baking Latin leavened breads. In
Burlington, Trattoria Delia serves traditional Neapolitan pizzas baked
in an imported Acunto oven. And of course in Barre, where so many
Italians immigrated, the Societa di Mutuo Soccorso provides community
support, and the Vermont Salumi and Alimentari Roscini Market keeps us
fed with some of the best cured meats in the State.
Some Italian philosophies have also made their way to Vermont. The
Slow Food movement, founded by Carlo Petrini in Turin, Italy, found a
welcoming home in our State less than 10 years after its conception.
The practices of growing and producing good, clean, and fair food
certainly weren't new to Vermonters, but Slow Food Vermont has become
an important part of our local food economy.
I am proud to be a member of VICA and so grateful for the rich
culture that Italian Americans have fostered in Vermont. The Green
Mountain appreciation for artisanal products created with craftsmanship
and traditional methods will always remind me of my Italian ancestors.
I look forward to being back in Vermont, breaking bread and sharing
wine, with this incredible community.
``We the Italians'' recently interviewed VICA President Lisa
DeNatale. Her comments so resonated with me. I recognize many of the
businesses, friends and communities she references. Even when far from
Vermont and at work in Washington, these kinds of interviews take me
home.
I ask unanimous consent that the recent interview with Lisa DeNatale
be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
[Dec. 7, 2021]
We the Italians: Interview With Lisa DeNatale (President of the Vermont
Italian Cultural Association)
If since the beginning of the pandemic I personally have
not yet had the opportunity to physically travel back to
visit any of the many friends of We the Italians scattered
across the United States, thanks to our interviews I often
have the chance to take a virtual trip and get to know the
various Italian communities both in the most famous areas of
America and in the lesser known ones here in Italy.
Vermont may be not that famous in Italy, but Italian
emigration to the Green Mountain State was very important and
I am pleased to thank and host Lisa DeNatale, President of
the Vermont Italian Cultural Association and also Ambassador
of We the Italians in Vermont. I'm hosting her on We the
Italians, but by telling me about the history and present of
Italy in Vermont, it's a bit like she's also hosting me in
Burlington and Barre. Are you ready? Come with me
Lisa, please tell us something about you and your Italian heritage
My grandparents, Maria Tripi and Salvatore DiNatale
emigrated from Pietraperzia, Sicilia in 1910. They married
and settled in Boston, eventually buying a home, and raising
their six children in Everett, Massachusetts.
Giuseppe Salvatore DiNatale, my father, was born in 1924.
He was deeply proud of his Sicilian heritage and often sang
songs and occasionally spoke to his children in Italian (not
dialect). If the truth be told, he mostly spoke in the
imperative! ``Vieni qui''; ``lasciala''; ``mangia'';
``andiamo subito'' are some of the phrases I recall.
I had a large extended family which gathered at my
grandparent's home for Pasqua, Natale, Onomastici and almost
any other occasion. I remember celebrating my father's
Onomastico with zeppole in honor of San Giuseppe. Each
celebration included more people than there were chairs,
crowded around tables in my grandparent's home. As children
we played bocce alongside the grape vines and pear trees in
their yard and danced the tarantella.
From a young age I recall attending the Feast of Maria
Santissima Della Cava, patroness of Pietraperzia, one of the
many feasts celebrated in Boston's North End each summer. In
1967 my parents and grandparents traveled together to Sicily
and Italy, reestablishing family connections and invigorating
our ties to Sicily. Upon returning my father began a life-
long focus on preparing authentic Italian foods such as
risotto milanese, calamari, polenta, pesto and panettone,
well before these gained popularity in the US.
In my twenties I began to visit Italy and have since
traveled there dozens of times, including twice to Sicily. It
may be surprising to hear that on my first trip to Sicily, I
was struck by how many of my childhood friends surnames
corresponded with places in Sicily such as Siracusa and
Mondello, and how many more had relatives buried in the
Cimitero di Pietraperzia. I understood then how much of my
childhood was inextricably tied to Sicily.
I am currently pursuing my Italian citizenship and am
awaiting my appointment at the Boston Consulate schedule for
March 2022.
You are the President of the Vermont Italian Cultural Association.
Please tell us about the history and the activities of this association
The Vermont Italian Cultural Association was founded in
1983 by Italians and Italian Americans many of whom had
relocated to Vermont in the late 70's. Dr. Ken Ciongoli, an
Italian American born in Philadelphia and Dr. Mario Morselli,
born in Bologna, were lecturing about Italy in Burlington,
Vermont and attracted interest from the community and in
particular from other Italians and Italian Americans in the
area. Some of the early VICA members were new to Vermont and
sought an Italian community in which to continue their family
traditions and celebrate their Italian heritage. In time, a
small group formed, drawn together by a mutual passion for
preserving and sharing Italian culture. During the early
years the group met in living rooms and later, in restaurants
and community centers that could accommodate the growing
numbers. Membership extended south to Barre and Rutland;
communities steeped in Italian heritage. The growing
community shared the bond of family and Italian traditions
and preserved these for generations to follow.
VICA has for many years celebrated Epifania with a visit
from La Befana and Carnevale which included a mask making
activity. In addition, VICA has sponsored trips to Italy as
well as opera excursions to Montreal, a short 90-minute drive
from Burlington. Programs and activities have expanded over
the years, ranging from lectures on art, travel and genealogy
to film, cooking, dance, language groups and bocce
tournaments. Monthly amici lunches bring together members for
socializing, and Italian conversation groups have continued
in classrooms, in coffee shops and on zoom.
More recently, VICA has turned to virtual events which have
proven to be very popular. These include book readings hosted
by Phoenix Books, a VICA partner, featuring Vermont authors
Vincent Panella, Jay Parini and Charlie Nardozzi, along with
travel author Carla Gambescia. A recent lecture on Slow Food
with the Slow Food Vermont chapter attracted over 100 people
and earlier this year VICA held two virtual presentations
entitled In Pursuit of Italian Citizenship, attracting over
200 VICA and community members.
And because Vermont winters can be cold and snowy in
December 2020, and almost bi-monthly since then, we've co-
hosted virtual wine-tastings with VICA partner Trattoria
Delia, showcasing Italian wines from every region. In
celebration of Women's History Month in March we featured
wines produced by women in Italy. Participants were treated
to personal video messages sent from three producers: Cinzia
Sommariva, Elisa Sesti and Giulia Negri. Each event includes
a selection of hand-curated antipasti prepared locally. These
events have proven to be enormously popular, engaging our
members and successfully recruiting others to VICA. Upcoming
events include virtual cooking classes, opera lectures and a
trip to Puglia in October 2022.
Promoting knowledge and appreciation of Italian culture in
our community is at the heart of the Vermont Italian Cultural
Association's mission. Each year VICA awards small grants and
scholarships to support projects and endeavors consistent
with VICA's mission. The VICA Scholarship and Grants Fund
encourages those who are seeking to broaden their knowledge
of Italy, including the Italian American experience, the
Italian experience, its language, arts, music, history, and
culture to apply. Most recently (prior to covid) two
scholarships were awarded. One went to a University of
Vermont student who participated in an archaeological
[[Page S9252]]
and agronomic research project at an ancient Roman villa in
the commune of Mompeo in the Lazio region. The other
recipient, also a UVM student, attended an archaeological
field school in Badia Pozzeveri in Tuscany, where she
participated in the excavation of the remains of a thirteenth
century church. At the conclusion of each project, the
scholarship recipients gave presentations to VICA members and
the broader community.
In the last year VICA has become a big part of my life. On
January 1st, 2021, my father passed away at the age of 96,
and I wondered how I might hold onto the traditions and
heritage he shared so proudly with his family. While I have
only been a VICA member since 2015, and only recently was
elected President, I am delighted for the opportunity to
honor my father in my role. His absence has left me with a
deeper commitment to VICA's mission, and that in truth, VICA
is the key to keeping my own heritage alive.
What's the story of the Italian emigration to Vermont?
I am not a historian, so I have relied on resources and
information found in news articles, historical societies, and
other documents. I am grateful to those writers who have
shared their knowledge and perspective so that we remember
the contributions of Italian immigrants to Vermont's economy
and culture. My response is based on articles from two
sources and used with permission from Vincent Feeney, Vermont
Historian and The (Barre-Montpelier) Times Argus.
Many people are surprised that Vermont had such a large
Italian immigrant population, but one need look no further
than the granite and marble quarries to understand the
immigrant story. Vermont welcomed Italian immigrants
beginning in the 1880's. The first Italian stone workers came
from Carrara to work at the Vermont Marble Company in
Rutland. They were skilled marble carvers who were drawn to
America for economic reasons and specifically to Vermont
because its hills and lakes reminded them of their ancestral
home.
Italians came to Barre, from 1890 to 1910 as stonecutters
to work in the granite quarries. By the turn of the century
there were several thousand Italians in Barre. By 1910, about
14 percent of Barre's population was Italian, and Barre was
the home of Vermont's largest Italian population. Most
immigrants to Barre came from the granite area around Viggiu
and Bisuschio in Lombardy as well as from the marble area
around Carrara in Tuscany. Some of Barre's outstanding pre-
World War II carvers and sculptors were Italian immigrants:
Carlo Abate, Joseph Calcagni, John Comi, Elia Corti, William
Corti, Enrico Mori, Samuel Novelli, Augusto Sanguinetti, and
Geno Tosi.
Other Italian immigrants came from the north as businessmen
or landowners. Others from southern Italy first worked for
U.S. railroads and then migrated to Barre establishing a
variety of businesses. Novelli & Corti was established by
Samuel (``Sandro'') Novelli and Elia Corti in 1901 and also
included John (``Crosta'') Comi and William (``Bigin'')
Corti. Novelli & Corti became Barre's premier sculpture and
carving studio of the early 1900s. There are many outstanding
examples of the skill of Barre's carvers in monuments
throughout Barre. And a walk through Hope cemetery, where
many Italian immigrant stonecutters are buried, is a
testament to their skills.
Later, due to a shortage of skilled granite workers a small
number of master sculptors and carvers were lured from Italy
through substantial wage increases to work in Barre. These
artists led a renaissance of stone art in Barre and trained a
whole new generation of Barre sculptors and carvers. Some of
Barre's outstanding post-World War II carvers and sculptors
include Angelo Ambrosini, Angelo Bardelli, Giuliano
Cecchinelli, Alcide Fantoni, Flavio Furloni, Frank Gaylord,
Ernesto Malnati, Orazio Marselli, Gino Sassi, and Lambruno
Sarzanini.
Italian immigrants were also settling in Burlington's urban
core in large numbers, as laborers working on the railroads
and others in the lumber yards. Some became peddlers selling
fruit and vegetables, later opening markets to serve the
growing Italian population. For the Italians of this
Burlington neighborhood--despite the hardships of the Great
Depression--the pre-World War II years were something of a
social/cultural ``Golden Age.'' Their businesses dotted the
neighborhood. For groceries in general, but particularly for
pasta, salami, and olives, neighbors shopped at Colaceci's,
Izzo's and Merola's. For a night out people dined at
Bernardini's Cafe, and beginning in 1941 and continuing for
the next 70 years Bove's was the restaurant to treat family
and friends to an inexpensive Italian dinner.
The neighborhood was also home to Italian institutions. In
1933 Italian men of Burlington joined with their fellow
countrymen of Winooski to form the Twin City Italian Club
(TWIC). Its professed purpose was to ``raise the standards''
of the Italian community and to prepare immigrants for
citizenship, but it was also a place where old-country
Italian men could socialize, talk about news from home, and
perhaps make job connections. By 1936 the club was
sufficiently prosperous that it bought a vacant lot and built
a social hall. The hall was the center of Italian social life
in Chittenden County for the next dozen years. Italian women
socialized in an organization called Regina of Mount Carmel,
a group that attended Mass together once a month. The Regina
of Mount Carmel was Mary, who for centuries had a devoted
following in the impoverished south of Italy from where so
many Italians had emigrated.
You've already mentioned a few, but are there other important
``Italian'' places in Vermont?
Barre is one of the most Italian places in Vermont, and is
home to The Societa di Mutuo Soccorso, founded by Italian
immigrants in Barre in 1906 as a fraternal and community
support group. Along with the Societa, are several businesses
including Vermont Salumi and (Alimentari Roscini) AR Market
in downtown Barre. Peter Roscini Colman, born in Assisi to an
Italian father and American mother is the founder and
proprietor of both. Pete grew up on an organic farm in
Vermont and spent summers in Umbria with his babbo's family.
There, he used to ``warm up'' for lunch at his grandparents'
house by eating prosciutto. He loved it so much he decided he
wanted to learn to make it himself. His uncle Franco
introduced him to Pepe, who introduced him to Francesco and
David. Soon, he was apprenticing with these norcini, the
famed butchers of Umbria, who taught him the methods,
techniques, and centuries-old traditions of salumi-making.
There's also Campo di Vino an authentic grocery, chock full
of Italian specialties made on the premises. Refrigerators
are stocked with homemade pastas including ravioli, gnocchi,
tagliatelle, and more; freshly stuffed luganiga and sausages
as well as cannoli and pies.
Not far from Barre, located in Northfield is La Panciata, a
family owned and operated wholesale bakery. Founder Glenn
Loati learned the ancient art of making Latin leavened loaves
of bread in Carrara, Italy where he traveled in 1992 to work
in the bakery of a local market. Today the bakery is owned
and operated by Glenn's son Justin. La Panciata produces and
distributes a wide variety of breads including Pane
Siciliano, Pane Altamura, Focaccia and an assortment of
biscotti.
Perhaps one of the most important and representative
Italian places is Hope Cemetery located in Barre. Strolling
through the cemetery, it's impossible not to notice the
gradual refinement of granite tombs over the course of the
20th century. The earliest gravestones are rough and
weathered, as though the earth had coughed them from the
ground. Many stonecutters died performing their craft, having
succumbed to the ``American disease'' silicosis. Because the
climate in Italy was milder, workers labored in sheds with
open sides, naturally ventilating the area, allowing the fine
dust to escape. One such stonecutter, Louis Brusa, died in
1937 at age 50 from silicosis. His monument is one of the
most unusual (and disturbing) in Hope Cemetery. Brusa is
shown exhausted and slumped backward with his wife Mary
comforting him. His chest is merged into the granite base
symbolic of his lungs filled with granite dust. Looking
around, the names on the tombstones conjure far-away places:
Columbo, Benvenuti, Peduzzi, Corti, and more. More than a few
are engraved in Italian: Nata Novembre 1872, Mo11a Febbraio
1936. There are prominent mausoleums where generations of
Italian families are buried side by side, close in death as
in life.
Not so much a place but a philosophy is Slow Food, the
movement founded by Carlo Petrini in Turin in 1989. Vermont
led the US, establishing the first Slow Food chapter here in
1998. Good, clean, fair food is a practice that has long been
at the root of Vermont agriculture, respect for the land, the
animals, and workers. In 2000 Carlo Petrini visited Vermont,
and in 2008 Vermont began sending a delegation to Terra
Madre, the most important international Slow Food event.
And what about the most representative Italians who marked a spot in
the history of the Italian presence in Vermont?
I've already mentioned many of the sculptors who have made
their mark in the cities, towns and public spaces in Vermont
and elsewhere having created lasting monuments with their
hands. One of the most notable Italian Americans is Vermont
Senator Patrick Leahy, whose maternal grandparents were
Italian immigrants. Senator Leahy is the most senior member
in the US Senate and Vermont's longest-serving Senator. He
and his wife Marcelle are also VICA members.
Is there an Italian festival in Vermont?
To my knowledge there has not been an Italian festival in
Vermont, however we would like to plan one for the future.
I'm certain there would be a great deal of interest from
Vermonters, including many from the business community. One
of Vermont's family owned and operated businesses,
Torronecandy.com would be very popular. Since 1988, the
Andriola family has attended a number of Italian festivals
throughout the Northeast, offering delicious Italian sweets
and treats from their traveling cart. Absent a festival in
Vermont, we can still order delicious imported treats shipped
to our homes, or we can invite Anne Marie Andriola,
Torronecandy.com founder and VICA member to a meeting!
You are an expert in marketing and brand development. How would you
promote Made in Italy in Vermont?
Soon after joining VICA's marketing committee, I created
the tagline ``Discover Italy
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in Vermont'' which I think lends itself very well to our
mission. For many, there is joy in discovering the
individuals, businesses, small producers, and artisans who
are preserving the traditions and craftsmanship made famous
by Italians both in Italy and here in Vermont. For example,
there are many businesses valued for their commitment to
sharing Italian culture as business owners, native-born
Italians, Italian Americans and purveyors of Italian food,
wine and Italian made products. And like Italy, Vermont has
its own brand with its reputation built on local production,
appreciation for quality and craftsmanship.
Vermont and Italy share similar values and I believe there
is already a deep appreciation for Made in Italy. We are
fortunate to have Italian farms like Agricola, a small
diversified farm in Panton, VT run by Alessandra and Stefano.
Both native Italians they are continuing the traditional
methods for making authentic Italian salumi and have
established Monti Verdi Salumi. More recently Trenchers
Italian Farmhouse began producing and selling home-made
pastas, sauces, bomboloni, focaccia and more at local farmers
markets. Jenny and Giacomo Vascotto are also sharing
traditional Italian techniques, practices and delicious food
with a growing number of devoted followers. So you see, in
some ways Made in Italy is also Made in Vermont.
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