When Mark Sciortino was 9 years old, he sat at the Galbani Italian Heritage Festival in its original Connecticut Street location, peeling onions and chopping peppers for Mineo & Sapio. Today, he is the face of the 50-year-old fest, as well as Galbani-sponsored Italian festivals in nine markets across the country.

The Buffalo Italian Festival began in the 1950s at St. Anthony's Church downtown. It moved to Connecticut Street in the 1970s, to Hertel Avenue in the late 1980s, and to Buffalo's Outer Harbor this weekend. Even with a new a $5 admittance charge, as many as half a million people are expected to attend.