March/April 2012 - Antonio Meucci Lodge Home

March/April 2012In This Issue:Hall of Fame Inductee . . . CoverPresident’s Message. . . . . . . . 2Events Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . 3SnapShots. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4-5In the News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Upcoming Events:March 14Officers’ MeetingMarch 17St. Joseph’s Dinner DanceMarch 27General MeetingMarch 31Wine Tasting & Chinese AuctionApril 11Officers’ MeetingApril 14Entertainment NightApril 22Hall of Fame Dinner DanceApril 24General MeetingMay 9Officers’ MeetingMay 22General MeetingAVANTIAntonio Meucci Lodge #213 OSIA • White Plains, NYMEUCCI HALL OF FAMEWELCOMES NEW MEMBERWhen Sis. Patricia Moore, or “Patty” asshe is affectionately known to all of us,becomes the 2012 inductee into theAntonio Meucci Lodge’s Hall of Fame thisApril 22, she’ll join a long and illustriouslist of members that also includes heruncle, former OSIA national presidentPeter Zuzolo. “That’s what makes thisaward so special to me,” says Sis. Patty.PatriciaMoore2012Inducteeto be honoredSunday, April 22At the Davenport ClubNew Rochelle, NY“Tradition and family are such a big partof it. I am honored and humbled beyondwords to feel that I am now included inthe same category as Frank Magnotta, AlRoselli, Tommy Borelli and Nat Carolini,men who I consider to be pillars of ourLodge and who I admired and looked upto so much.”(Continued on page 6)

A Message From YourPRESIDENTAntonio Meucci Lodge #213279 Maple Avenueat Antonio Meucci PlaceWhite Plains, New York 10606(914) 761-9073www.antoniomeuccilodge.comOFFICERS 2011-2013Teresa Riverso, President(914) 997-7388 ▪ triverso@yahoo.comRose Tassone, 1st Vice Pres.Flavia DiNota, 2nd Vice Pres.Mario Cermele, Immediate Past PresidentLenny Mignini, OratorRita Cestone, Recording Sec.Annamaria Forte, Corresp. Sec.Luigi DiNota, Financial Sec.Anna Binasco, TreasurerVito Cirioni, Principal TrusteeTrusteesUmberto Amato • Concetta BevilacquaRita Carolini • Pamela DanzaSandy Farduchi • Charles GuastellaJean Borrelli-Ilardi • Carmela MerensteinCatherine Mignini • Mary MorraPaola Pesaturo • Domenico RiversoJohn Rubillo • Benedetta VaccarelliCeremonial OfficersTina Amato • Cathy GrisantiSentinelsTony Cestone • Alan MerensteinArbitration CommitteeMary Borrelli • Angela D’AmbrosioDomenico D’Ambrosio • Ann GiordanoPatricia Moore • Maria PippoGiuseppe Tanzi • Frank TassoneJoseph Tassone • Lucy TocciNick VaccarelliChaplainCarmen ScaglioneState DeputyJoe ZingoneThe Avanti is the official newsletter of the AntonioMeucci Lodge #213. Published bi-monthly, theAvanti accepts news releases, reviews, commentariesand other information significant to theItalian-American community. Please contactEditor Maria Riverso at (914) 997-7388.2Teresa RiversoDear Brothers and Sisters,I think you all know that I’m in Florida atthe present moment but I have beenkeeping in touch with everything that hasbeen going on up north. Everything isgoing so well that perhaps I can stay herefor a little longer than I originally planned!Seriously, I want to thank everyone for theirphone calls to keep me informed. All theofficers are doing a fantastic job keepingthe Lodge going at its fullest capabilities. Iwant to especially thank Sis. RoseTassone and Sis. Flavia DiNota, who filledin for me by presiding over the meetings inmy absence, and also to all who attendedfor keeping the meetings productive.One of the first things I’m going to dowhen I return at the end of March is go totake a look at the new tile floor in the barroom. I hear that it is just beautiful andmakes the room look totally different. I amso grateful to Bro. Luigi DiNota, Bro.Umberto Amato and Bro. Vito Cirioni fortaking the time to involve themselves in thisproject. Thanks so much for caring aboutour lodge building and helping it look nicer.I must say I’m sorry that I had to missthe wonderful events that took place inFebruary. I got phone call after phone callabout how much fun the SweetheartsDance was from the food to the music tothe decorations. My warmest thanks toBro. Tony and Sis. Tina Amato for doing agreat job with this event. I also understandthat the Carnevale di Venezia perBambini was also very successful andeverything went very well. Thank you toBro. Vito and Sis. Santina Tassone andBro. Joe Amato for chairing this event andalso to Bro. Joe’s lovely wife Toni Marie forall working so hard for the benefit of thechildren. It’s so critical to our futurelongevity that our kids grow up to know theirculture and heritage and events like thesedefinitely help. It was so nice to have Bro.Geoffrey Claroni, who played Arlecchino,back with us for this event. Thanks, Bro.Geoffrey, for once again donning yourcostume for a new generation of Meuccichildren. I heard that the Journal News hadsome great photos and a nice article aboutthis event. Congratulations to everyoneinvolved in this effort; I know it was worth it!April is a milestone month for two ofour long-standing members: Sis. PattyMoore, who is being inducted into our ownHall of Fame, and Prof. Carlo Sclafani,who is retiring after 40 years of service toWestchester Community College, where heheads the WCC Italian Club. I am veryproud to have them as members of theLodge and also to call them my friends.I’ve known Sis. Patty for many years andshe has one of the biggest hearts of anyperson I know, with a special place in it forthe less fortunate. She is so deserving ofthis award with all she’s done to helppeople while raising two beautiful childrenand taking care of her mom. Kudos, Sis.Patty on receiving the recognition you’veearned so much! I’ve also known Prof.Sclafani for a long time and have had thepleasure of witnessing his tremendouscontributions to the Italian AmericanCommunity, including our own Lodge,many times. I know if anyone deserves toretire it’s the Professor but it will be muchharder knowing that he won’t be as visiblein our community as before. Best wishes toyou, Professor, and we will miss yourofficial leadership but hopefully we will stillget to see you at the Lodge.Finally, I would be remiss if I did notgive my special thanks to Bro. TonyCapicotto for his special help recently withthe heating plant. As soon as Bro. Tonyheard something was amiss he jumpedright in to fix it. It’s only when he can’t fixsomething himself that he calls in someoneelse, as he’s always trying to help usconserve financially, and that’s alwaysappreciated. Thank you Bro. Tony, for yourhelp and concern for our Lodge! Andfinally, thank you to Bro. Leonardo andSis. Catherine Mignini for always takingcare of the lodge as though it is yoursecond home! SEMPRE AVANTI!Fraternally yours,AVANTI March/April 2012

EVENTS CALENDARON, ABOUT AND AROUND THE LODGEP L E A S E N O T E• All events are held at the Lodge unless otherwise indicated• Members are NOT required to RSVP for general meetings. Acontact number is provided in case you have questions aboutthe meeting itself.OFFICERS’ MEETINGS are onWEDNESDAYS at 8:00 pm sharp.(The 2nd Wednesday of every month.)March 14 ▪ April 8 ▪ May 9all while listening to the vocal talents of Italian andItalian-American music singer Nina Longordo.$25 pp. RSVP please by March 24.Contact: Bro. Joe Lembo, Chairperson,(jlembo@kohlerronan.com) or (203) 733-0658.Saturday, April 14Entertainment Night7:00 pmGENERAL MEETINGS are onTUESDAYS at 8:00 pm sharp.(The 4th Tuesday of every month.)March 27 ▪ April 24 ▪ May 22Contact: Sis. Rita Cestone, (914) 948-3608.Saturday, March 17St. Joseph’s Dinner Dance7:00 pmDinner, music by DJ and dancing.$25 pp. RSVP please..Contact: Co-Chairs Sis. AnnamariaForte at (914) 769-9122 or Bro.Umberto Amato at (914) 907-8755.Don’t miss this wonderful night of Italian-orientedcomedy and music preceded by a deliciouscomplete dinner with beverages. The Don FeliceBand will perform in their beloved style with aspecial appearance by vocalist Alfio. Floyd Vivinowill provide his unique brand of comedy.$50 pp. RSVP please.Saturday, March 31La Sera Del Vino7:00 pmContact: Co-Chairpersons Bro. Luigi and Sis.Flavia DiNota, (914) 769-8987.Finally, an evening especially forthe Meucci wine enthusiast! Joinus in our first-ever wine-tastingparty and Chinese auction.Whether you’re a wine novice oran aficionado, you’ll enjoysampling the various wines fromaround the world that will be available courtesy oflocal wine shops for tasting and purchase. Cleanseyour palette between samplings with light horsd’oeuvres and peruse the items to be raffled off,Sunday, April 224:30 pmHall of Fame Spring Dinner DancePlease join us at the Davenport Club in NewRochelle to help us induct Sis. Patricia Moore,into our Antonio Meucci Lodge #213 Hall ofFame. Cocktails followed by dinner anddancing. $65 pp. RSVP please.Contact: Sis. Rita Cestone, (914) 946-3608.3

SNAPSHOTSA LOOK AT LODGE LIFE AND EVENTS IN PHOTOS4AVANTI March/April 2012

For the latest calendar information and photos of events, check out the calendar section of ourwebsite at www.antoniomeuccilodge.com/calendar.htm.Page 4, clockwise from upper left-hand corner) SWEETHEARTS DANCE—Love was in the air—and on the wallsand on the tables!—in the festively decorated Lodge room on February 11 for the Valentine’s Day celebration,hosted by Sis. Tina and Tony Amato pictured here in front of the Meucci banner. Bro. Vito and Sis. RosemarieCirioni enjoy a dance at the party, while a number of the attendees, dressed for the occasion in red, pose in front ofthe giant red balloon heart brought in especially for the evening. (Page 4, bottom two photos) PASTA NIGHT—Members enjoy the food and camaraderie of the January 27 event. Pictured are Sis. Connie and Bro. VinnieBevilacqua and their guests and Sis. Mary Borelli. DO YOU KNOW WHO THIS WOMAN IS?(This page clockwise from upper left-hand corner ) CARNEVALE DI VENEZIA PER BAMBINI—The February 25event was a resounding success, with 45 adults and 57 kids attending and participating in Carnevale themeddancing, games, mask-making workshops, processions and more. Bro. Roberto Caso and his wife Annalisa joinCo-chairs Sis. Santina Tassone and Bro. Joe Amato with his wife Toni Marie in donning masks; children are ledin the dances by Arlecchino (Bro. Geoffrey Claroni); Children Gwyneth Lileika, Deanna Fielding, GiuseppeTassone and Domenico Monteleone have fun trying to recreate the famous Carnevale masks; and Bro. Geoff andBro. Vito Tassone, who played Re Carnevale and was one of the co-chairs, smile for the camera.5

CONGRATULATIONSTO Prof. CarloSclafani on hisretirement asChairperson of theModern LanguagesDepartment at WestchesterCommunity College. He will behonored on April 22 at the VIPClub. It’s hard to believe thatBro. Carlo will be stepping downafter so many years but he’ll stillbe involved with the Italian Cluband the Italian Community.Thank you Professor foreverything you have done for ourcommunity and best wishes forIN THE NEWSWhat’s Going On With Our Membersyour retirement. Hopefully, youcan relax a little!WAY TO GO!—Has everyoneseen the wonderful new tile floorin the bar room? It looksfabulous, and we have the trio ofBros. Luigi DiNota, UmbertoAmato and Vito Cirioni to thankfor it. Thanks, gentlemen, fortaking the time to get involvedand making it better for all of us!6IT’S A BOY! Bro. AgosotinoSinapi is now the proud papa toAgostino II. Congratulations andbest wishes to dad, mom andbaby, who was born February 11.GET WELL WISHES toGiovanna Rubillo, the daughter ofBro. Giovanni Rubillo, who is athome and doing better after abrief hospital stay. Also home,thankfully, after being in thehospital: Bro. UmbertoAmato, Bro. FrankDeCattino and Bro.Frank Tassone. Ahealthy and speedyrecovery to you all.SINCERE CONDOLENCES TOBro. Vinnie and Sis. ConnieBevilacqua on the passing ofConnie’s brother-in-law, AngeloDipilato, and also to Sis. SandyFarduchi on the passing of herfather.HAVE ANY NEWSTO SHARE?Contact Maria Riverso at 287-0282.Patty Moore Named 2012 Antonio Meucci Hall of Fame Inductee(Continued from page 1)Indeed, this year’s honoree certainly has done her share ofbringing pride, honor and hard work to our Lodge just as herprestigious predecessors had done before her. Sis. Patty isperhaps best known for her chairmanship of the Lodge HolidayDrives for the Needy and the Annual Children’s Christmas Partywhere she and Co-Chair Bro. Charles Guastella famouslydress-up in elaborate holiday-oriented costumes to entertain thekids. But she has chaired many other events in her 25 years asan active Meucci member. The Country Western Night, the B.Albert Roselli Citizenship Award and the John Basilone StampPetition have all been led by the White Plains resident, and shehas held many Executive Board positions, including serving asorator, in her involvement with the Order.“Sis. Patty Moore is one of the hardest working people Iknow and is so deserving of this honor,” says President TeresaRiverso, who has know the inductee for many years. “She’sworked hard ever since I’ve known her, either working (currentlyas the Corporate Accounting Director for Cipriani USA) orraising her two beautiful children (Kelley, owner of Kelley MooreEvents, and Michael, a senior financial analyst for HudsonValley Bank) or helping her mom. She’s always busy but theLodge can always count on her.”Sis. Rita Cestone, who is chairing the Annual Spring Hall ofFame Dinner Dance this April 22 that will include Sis. Patty’sInduction Ceremony, states that the award is given to amember who has been with the Lodge for a minimum of 25years, is in good standing, has served as a board member andchaired events and overall, has contributed greatly to theLodge’s welfare. Sis. Patty certainly fits that bill, according toSis. Rita, who fondly recalls attending the children’s Christmasparties with her own children and then her grandchildren. “Iremember one Christmas party where Patty and Charliedressed up as candles and then led the children in a candlelightprocession singing carols, “ Sis. Rita recalls. “It was sobeautiful. That was probably my favorite children’s Christmasparty that they ever did,” she says.Given that Sis. Patty has chaired theevent for 22 years, it’s not unusual to seethose who attended way back when itstarted come back as grown-ups withtheir own little ones, something Sis. Pattyrelishes. “I have watched the Children’sChristmas Party come full circle. Some ofthe children that used to attend are nowattending with their children and I have allof those precious memories to share withmultiple generations,” she says.While everyone probably has theirpreferred memory of one of theseremarkable parties, Sis. Patty’s actual favorite accomplishmentas a Meuccian is raising funds for the food drive and spearingup the Toys For Tots collection. “I love being in a position tohelp others in our community that are in need and hopefullymaking their holidays a bit brighter through my efforts,” sheshares with us. As with most labors with great merit, her hardwork did not go unnoticed: last year the Salvation Army,through which she conducts the annual drive, asked her to jointheir Executive Advisory Board and she did so eagerly. Nowthat’s something we can all be proud of!So, please join us on Sunday, April 22 at the DavenportClub in New Rochelle to thank Sis. Patty for all her hard workand welcome her into our Hall of Fame. Sis. Rita Cestone istaking reservations for the event, which will feature a cocktailhour followed by dinner and dancing. This promises to be awonderful celebration of a wonderful lady; please make yourreservations now by giving the event chairperson a call at (914)946-3608.AVANTI March/April 2012

PLEASE NOTE:Applications are now being accepted for the 2012 SpringScholarships. Contact Chairperson Sandy Farduchi at(914) 831-8599 for more information.Support OurSPONSORSAd Space is Available!Call Rita Cestone at (914) 948-3608.SALVATORE M. DI COSTANZO, ESQ.a Partner with the firm of McMillan, Constabile, Maker & Perone, LLPElder Law, Estate Planning,Medicaid Planning (Nursing Home and Home Care),Asset Protection Planning, Estate AdministrationMember, National Academy of Elder Law AttorneysPast Chair, Westchester County Bar Assoc. Elder Law CommitteeExecutive Committee. New York State Bar Assoc. Elder Law Sectionwww.PlanTodayForTomorrow.comwww.McMillanConstabile.comWEST-FAIR OAK FLOOR CORP.“Hardwood Flooring Contractors”VITO CIRIONI, PRES.(914) 761-VITO (8486)22 High Ridge Road, East White Plains, NY 10604Fax (914) 761-9156FREE ESTIMATESWEST CO. LIC#WC2122-H89Yorktown Heights, New York2074 Crompond RoadYorktown Heights, New York 10598(914) 245-2440 Telephone(914) 834-0620 FacsimileLarchmont, New York2180 Boston Post RoadLarchmont, New York 10538(914) 834-3500 Telephone(914) 834-0620 Facsimilee-mail: smd@mcmplaw.com7

AVANTIThe Antonio Meucci Lodge #213Order Sons of Italy in America279 Maple Avenueat Antonio Meucci PlaceWhite Plains, New York 10606BALLARD-DURANDFUNERAL HOMEMATTHEW J. FIORILLOTelephoneFax(914) 949-0566 (914) 949-38492 Maple Avenue at South BroadwayWhite Plains, NY 10606www.ballarddurand.comBCGBenedict, Cafagno & GrilloInsurance ServiceServing the Community Over 50 Years11 Virginia RoadN. White Plains, NY 10603(914) 683-1105 (914) 946-9300H awthorne F uneral H ome21 West Stevens AvenueHawthorne, NY 10592(914) 769-4404Ernest J. Carpentieri – OwnerThis space is available.AUTO ■ HOME ■ LIFE & COMMERCIAL INSURANCESCAVONE INSURANCE CENTERFOR ALL YOUR INSURANCE NEEDS!470 Mamaroneck Ave. Suite 205 ▪ White Plains, NY 10605Phone (914) 428-7111 ▪ Fax 914-428-7764E-mail us at Scavoneins@aol.comVisit our new WEB Page at www.scavoneins.comPlanning a party or event?Rent our beautiful Lodge!Call Bro. Frank Taroneat (914) 761-3350(Members Only)8AVANTI March/April 2012