The 85th Grand Lodge of California Convention was held in the beautiful Double Tree by Hilton Anaheim/Orange County California. Our Host Lodges were the Anaheim Lodge #2076 and Renaissance Lodge #2259. They did a wonderful job making us feel welcomed.

On Wednesday we held the Bocce Tournament. Everyone had a wonderful time, and the cream did rise to the top with the winning team of Louie Lodi (First Vice President), Al Girolami (Columbia Lodge), Dan

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

I want to continue to give updates to you on important topics, rather than wait for meetings like plenaries and conventions.

Firstly, I would like to introduce to you our new employee, Michael Howard, who was recently hired as a member of the National Office staff as Bookkeeper/Administrative Assistant.

Michael graduated from Florida A&M University with a bachelor’s degree in accounting and brings previous accounting, financial auditing, and not-for-profit board member experience to our team.

Michael is highly motivated, eager to learn and has already proven to be a positive addition to the culture in our National Office! He works closely with Shayla Kaestle, CPA, learning the details of OSDIA finances and implementing various process improvements. Michael will be responsible for accounting tasks, office mailings, and other administrative work. We look forward to his future with us. Please feel free to call the National Office to welcome Michael to the OSDIA team.

I want to also thank Shayla as the professional time she has put in working on our books, and with Michal and our new accountant we will literally save approximately $80,000/year in accounting services and render a more professional and competent work product. Miles Fisher, the long-time Editor-in-Chief of our Italian America magazine, recently accepted a job offer from his previous employer to return as a manager. We thank Miles for his many

First of all, we would like to clarify that we perfectly know that many people don’t celebrate Christmas and that this festivity is especially associated to the Christian religion, the birth of Jesus Christ, the three Wise Men etc, but here in Italy Christmas is by now associated to many other things that have nothing to do with the religion, such as:

1. TO GO SHOPPING
Christmas is a festivity that is characterized by conspicuous consumption: in spite of the cold and the low temperatures, many people flood in the streets – rigorously decorated with lights and decorations – to crowd

San Francisco’s 153rd celebration of Italian Heritage came back with a roar, even with Covid-19 restrictions in place. On Friday night, October 8th, the Italian Heritage weekend began with the crowning of Queen Isabella, Grace Ann Cardenas, the knighting of Christopher Columbus as portrayed by Joseph Cervetto, Jr., and the presentation of the Royal Court (Princess, Duchesses, Contessas, Ladies in Waiting, Crown Bearer and Scroll Bearer) at the San Francisco Italian Athletic Club in North Beach. This was followed by a public presentation of the Queen and Court in Washington Square Park, and then Sergio Strozzi, Italian Consul General, flipped a light switch that illuminated Saints Peter & Paul’s Italian Cathedral and the Club with the colors of the Italian flag. Even City Hall was aglow with the Green, White, and Red. Beautiful! The next night, there was a lovely reception at the Italian Consulate for the Court, their families, and the Board of DiSunday morning started with a solemn High Mass at Saints Peter and

It’s that time again! We are looking for participants for the upcoming Royal Pageant for the 2022 Grand Lodge Convention in Southern California. The contest officially begins on November 1, 2021. Deadline for participant notification is Sunday, November 14, 2021. We are encouraging not only our young ladies, but also our young men to get involved. Remember this is one of the few opportunities that we have to highlight our youth. So we are hoping that more of our lodges will join in and find someone to represent their lodge. It is important to let me know if you have a candidate as soon as possible. The candidates must be between the ages of 15-26, single or married and a member in good standing of the Grand Lodge of California.

Again, the contest officially starts on November 1. Tickets can be ordered from the Grand Lodge. The more tickets you sell, the more money your lodge will receive back. For the last pageant, more than 50% of the monies received went back to the participating lodges. All participants must have a minimum of $2,000 to qualify. Any tickets sold beyond that will determine their placement of the top five in the Royal Pageant. All monies must be mailed to the Grand Lodge in the registered mail envelope provided by the Grand Lodge. The envelope must be postmarked by Monday, April 25, 2022. Placement of the Royal Pageant will be announced in May. More information will be sent from the Grand Lodge detailing all the rules at a later date.

Remember, we need to know no later than Sunday November 14th, if you will have a participant to represent your lodge. Email me