A lot goes into the Mount St. Peter Parish's Festa Italiana. Entering its 36th year, this year's event required more than 3,000 meatballs, 240 gallons of red sauce, 53 sheet pans of lasagna and 180 pounds of spaghetti.

Every ounce of the food is homemade and would make even the most discerning of nonnas pleased with its authenticity. All told, it takes a team of more than 200 volunteers to prepare all of that food and coordinate serving the thousands of visitors expected to take part in the three-day event.