Italian-American Herald - December 2022

LOCAL AUTHOR
‘Chronicler’ Jo-Ann Vega’s new memoir
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DECEMBER 2022
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A MONTHLY NEWSPAPER SERVING THE ITALIAN-AMERICAN COMMUNITY WWW.ITALIANAMERICANHERALD.COM
Event planner shares secret to success: Party like an Italian
By Ken Mammarella
Being Italian has been integral to Renee Patrone’s success as an event planner and party helper.
“A lot of food, a lot of entertainment, a lot of family times, a lot of everything,” she explained. “Being Italian plays into what I do on a daily basis.”
In 2007, she founded Events by Renee, for weddings and other big events in greater Philadelphia.
That was followed in 2013 by Party Host Helpers, answering the call of brides and other clients who needed help for smaller events. It quickly grew, now operating regularly in 20 U.S. cities. She’s had queries from Canada, England and Australia, so she’s thinking about expanding internationally.
Her staff today includes eight regional directors, one accounting professional,
a personal assistant and 20,000 people
– handpicked, background-checked, industry-certified and professionally attired –
See RENEE PATRONE - page 6
Natale with a twist
Local customs take root in areas not formally part of Italy
Locarno on Ice is a crowd-pleaser during the Christmas holidays in Ticino, Switzerland.
By Jeanne Outlaw-Cannavo
Christmas in Italy is a magical time and the traditions in each of the regions are often incorporated into the celebrations of millions of Italians who now live across the globe. While each region of Italy observes universal religious customs, Italians often infuse more localized practices into their
holiday routine.
This is also the case for several Italian-
speaking areas, which are not “officially” part of Italy. There are several areas which are geographically tied to Italy where the residents are not technically Italian citizens.
The conventional rites of Christmas at the Vatican are well known around the world among Roman Catholics. There
are about 450 people within the walls and around 800 in total who are citizens. Citizenship is not granted to this city state by birth, but by employment status.
Christmas in Italian-speaking Switzerland combines both time-honored customs with celebrations that reflect the
See CHRISTMAS - page 4
UNICO Rehoboth hears from Sinatra scholar
Italian-American Herald
The UNICO Rehoboth Area Chapter season opener on Oct. 20 featured author- member Richard Muti, who shared his research and lifelong interest in Frank Sinatra, with his publication “Cent’anni: The Sinatra Legend at 100.”
Muti, a member who along with his wife Lorraine, transferred from a New Jersey
UNICO Chapter and lives in Millsboro, has an impressive resume. A graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, Harvard Business School and Rutgers Law School, he spent 19 years as a trial prosecutor, taught writing, criminal justice, and American government and politics at three New Jersey universities. He is also a former Navy
See UNICO - page 7
Keynote speaker Richard Muti shares his research into Frank Sinatra.
Vol. 9 / No. 12