Northern Solano Lodge #2534

Another year is quickly passing by and summer will soon be over. Northern Solano Lodge has been especially busy this past month. Our members have been very generous with our school supply project. The project, under the chairmanship of Charlene Ping, collected and distributed $1530 worth of supplies and cash to the teachers and students of Suisun Elementary School.

For our monthly meeting in August, we held our annual Gene Bruno Picnic – an indoor picnic where we did not have to brave the heat. Our kitchen crew supplied the main meal with members bringing appetizers, salads and side dishes. Joy Bruno supplied a cake in honor of her late husband, Gene Bruno one of our Past Presidents, who our picnic is named after. Games, including corn hole and cards, were enjoyed by many.

On August 29th Richard Barker set up a night at a River Cats baseball game in Sacramento. Thirty-eight members enjoyed the outing including members from Northern Solano, Napa and Sacramento Lodges. Unfortunately, the River Cats did not prevail over the Albuquerque Isotopes. Even so, a fun time was had by all.

A lodge Bocce Day was held on September 9th, coordinated by Past President Don Cradduck. Twenty members formed 4 teams to compete for first, second and third place medals. First place went to the Holy Cannolis with Jeanne Cradduck, Ken Gallagher, Sue Petty and Kay Locatelli. Second place was w La Pastaronis with Rory Nichols, Laure DeVincenzi-Nichols, Ralph Petty and Laverne Maxwell. Third place went to La Zittitones with Jim Shepherd, Frank Rossi, Louise Rossi and Caroline Abughazaleh. We even had a cheerleader – our own Joy Bruno. She can really shake those pompoms – red and green of course. A very enjoyable day!

Everything is not only about having fun and games. We are also planning for our annual Columbus Day Celebration on October 14th. A shrimp and pasta dinner is planned. Raffle prizes, silent auction items and dessert auction items are being prepared and tickets are being sold.

Our lodge works hard and enjoys many fun activities. We continue to stay active in the community through service work, special projects like the school supply drive and community giving, all while perpetuating our Italian heritage and inviting others to join.