From Dominic Candeloro, Chair Campaign for Italian American Studies at Loyola
https://www.facebook.com/italianamericanLoyola

What's your Italian American heritage worth to you? Today, 6 generations and 150 years after the first migrations, the record of that epic experience is at risk of fading away. Though we may retain some food traditions, vestiges of the language, and a love for travel to Italy, we lack the means to systematically preserve the record of our past and to transmit it to future generations. UNTIL NOW!

Fr. Michael Garanzini, SJ, President and CEO of Loyola University Chicago has offered a match of $500,000 to create an endowed professorship of Italian American Studies at Loyola, IF the Italian American community can raise an equal amount. The resulting endowment would establish permanently a faculty position to research, teach, write and promote OUR STORY---in perpetuity. Once the money is raised, it stays there earning dividends. Our endowed professorship would be unique in the Midwest. Visit the donation webpage at www.LUC.edu/italianamerican/.

OUR task is to make this happen. It won't be easy. While we have many wealthy and generous Italian Americans and over 200 IA clubs in the Chicago area, this project is new and it is much larger than most of the charities embraced by the usual funders. We need to think BIG. We can do this!

We need YOU! Whatever way you do the arithmetic, getting to $500,000 will require active participation a high percentage of Italian Americans---not just the wealthy and those deeply involved in the established organized. While our committee is working diligently to find major donors, the goal will not be achieved without a broad base of contributors. No donation is too small, or too large.

As we move into the Christmas season and the memory of family and cherished traditions, consider a gift that will preserve the story the sacrifice, struggle and achievements of our Italian immigrant ancestors, please write a TAX DEDUCTIBLE check. You may be one of those fortunate enough to have seen a nice jump in your stock market holdings. Sharing your good fortune would be a great way to celebrate our ancestors.