Welcome to September!

We have so many exciting events still to come!

Let me first talk about our Family Picnic, which was held on August 8th. We all had a tremendous time, and I would like to thank our Chairman, Brother Jake Zozzaro, and our entire committee for putting together such a fabulous day. I would like to especially thank Brother Danny Mendez on manning the grill all day and the behind-the-scenes crew that did an amazing job. We had a very good showing of the Per Sempre Lodge family. As with every family get-together, you have to feed your family well, and I think we certainly accomplished that! We had a very extensive menu, and everyone enjoyed the delicious food.

More importantly, our family showed a great deal of togetherness and had a lot of fun, especially with all the games we played. It reminded me of the movie “The Santa Claus 2”, when Tim Allen reveals a collection of old toys to the adults at a boring faculty Christmas party, the same toys they played with when they were young. All of a sudden, the adults become children again, playing with the toys and having the time of their lives.

 
That is exactly what I saw with our Per Sempre family as everyone joined in playing Bocce, Corn-hole, and Horseshoes. The competition was intense, and everyone was having a great time! It was wonderful to see everyone enjoying themselves, laughing, competing, and simply spending time together as a family. So, mark your calendars and be sure to read your newsletter to find out when our picnic will be held next year. We hope to see everyone there!

Our Night at the Races event finally happened. The weather conditions cooperated. I would like to thank Brother Carmine Rosato on his expertise of the Night at the Races. Brother Joe Rondinelli for being the best MC around. All our council members working together as a very well-driven oiled machine. The night was amazing with 106 guests in attendance. This is the reason behind the hard RSVP for our events and the signing in at the front door. I understand that because of the date change many of you could not attend. I could only say there will be more exciting monthly meetings to come. Our September Ice Cream Social meeting is already being planned. So, mark your
calendars with everything Per Sempre.

I would like everyone to please review our new Resource Page in each month's newsletter. This page contains important information that every member may find helpful. Following the cancellation of our July event, we will be adding even more information to make it an even better resource for our members. Please remember that our newsletter also includes a Good and Welfare section. If you know of a member who is ill, recovering from surgery, or experiencing a difficult time, we ask you to let us know as soon as possible. It is always better for us to reach out and offer our support promptly rather than learning about someone's situation months later. As I have often said at our meetings, when you joined Per Sempre Lodge, you didn't just become a member of the Per Sempre Lodge, you became part of a family. Families look after one another, and that is something we should always strive to do.

Updated Meetings and Event Schedules are as follows:

Our Ice Cream Social has been moved to Tuesday, September 15, and will be combined
with our presentation on Italian Citizenship for American Citizens. (This is a FREE event,
and children are welcome to attend) We will have ice cream with all your favorite toppings. The ice cream presentation will be after our meeting and the presentation of Italian Citizenship.

October 20th Our Italian Heritage Night with Speaker Lou Del Bianco, grandson of the Chief Carver of Mount Rushmore (RSVP is required Children are welcome to attend) This is a good month to bring your friends who might want to join our lodge. I would like to see 150 in attendance! Yes, I just said that. In closing I continue to encourage all members to stay involved and attend our meetings and our events. We are working very hard to keep everyone engaged and involved. As I stated I enjoyed my phone conversations with all of you these past months and appreciate your kind words. Thank you for your understanding, your support, and your continued commitment to the Per Sempre Lodge. I look forward to seeing everyone at our upcoming events!