Congratulations to L'ITALO AMERICANO 100 years!
(Celebrating the foresight of the publishers and editors)
It has been several years since I began writing my column for L'Italo-Americano. In this time I've plumbed the depths of my family memories and my Italian American heritage. I've shared with my readers my personal stories of my immigrant grandparents’, of their culture, their arrival to this country and family stories and anecdotes.
As an Italian American writer, I must express my gratitude to the founder of L’Italo-Americano, Gabriello Spini, not only for what he gave to the early immigrant population, but for creating a newspaper that survives today, giving Italian American writers a place where they can tell their family stories, report news, and express their opinions.
L’Italo-Americao was born in 1908, the same year many of our grandparents, and their families, were arriving through the golden doors and getting off the ships at Ellis Island. Gabriello Spini was a man with foresight and courage. A learned Florentine, he wanted to "Inform, Unite and Assist" the rising Italian American community of Los Angeles.
From that seed grew a newspaper that would become invaluable to a population of Italian immigrants who needed to assimilate into a new society while at the same time holding tight to family traditions. L’Italo-Americano and its current publisher and editors have done all of this and more for the Italian community. There are few places where the Italian American story can be told, where our accomplishments and family histories can be expressed.
L'Italo-Americano newspaper, and its web-site, give a voice to the Italian American writer and storyteller. Through the years, I've received many letters and messages from L’Italo-Americano readers who share the same kind of family experiences that I have written about in my column. It's this connecting cultural thread of family traditions and heritage that runs through us all. I believe that's what it's all about, connecting one to the other with a sharing of feelings and spirit.
"All strong emotions leave an indelible mark," wrote noted author Virginia Woolf. "The past," Woolf wrote, "urges us to 'leave a trace.'" I hope, after all these years of writing about my Italian heritage, that I've managed to leave something that will be remembered. It can sometimes be difficult to create new ways of putting into words the feelings that come from a heritage rich with friends and memories, but the deep well of family stories, experiences and observances never seems to run dry.
When I first started writing for L'Italo-Americao, my articles were published only occasionally. After a year, or so, it went on to become a regular column, "Cookie Curci's Italian American Scene". Since I'm a life long Bay Area resident (San Jose) my column found a home in the San Francisco section. I regard my early stories, memories, and columns like babies. A bit feeble and weak at first, then, after a gawky awkward stage, they emerged stronger, began to grow and improve and finally to stand on their own.
But my Italian American column would never have happened without the care and attention of editors like Mario Trecco and Italian American newspapers such as L’Italo-Americano. Since I began writing my "Italian American" columns and relating my family stories to the public, my family memories and writing has became a passion for me. I have no choice but to give in to its nagging... stop what I'm doing and jot down a few lines, or even an entire column, which may take hours or even days or weeks.
For any of you who have thought about recording your family history or writing an article, I suggest you get started on it now, the sooner the better. The upcoming generation will appreciate it. But be warned, you will need long periods of time to yourself and patience… writing will be all that you will find time for until you finish your article, family story or grandma’s favorite recipes. Sometimes, through the years, I've been accused of writing with a little too much Horatio Alger in my themes.
I can't deny many of my family stories have a moral message. Other times, I've been criticized for writing as if my family and my heritage were the center of the universe. Well, that's easy to explain. I write as if my family and heritage are the center of the universe because for me… they are.
10631 Vinedale Street, Sun Valley, CA 91352 - Phone (818) 767-3413 - Fax: (818) 767-1410
