“Money makes the world go ’round,” or so they say. But in the world I live in, volunteerism is every bit as precious as cold, hard cash. At Fra Noi, we have Dan Serafini, a retired financial systems programmer who emailed me out of the blue one day with an offer of help. He came along just as Mary DeSanto was stepping down as our longtime mailing manager, and Dan now assembles our monthly renewal notices, with lunch as his only material reward.

The Italian American Veterans Museum is run by an all-volunteer board that’s rich in both talent and commitment. With full lives of their own, they nevertheless turn out in force for every meeting and presentation, rise to the occasion when asked to lend a hand, and give generously to the museum’s annual appeal.