Our Italian ancestors observed the Christmas season as early as December 13, the Feast Day of Saint Lucy. Santa Lucia brings gifts for the children, until the arrival of “La Befana,” on the eve of the Epiphany, January 6.

Today, Italian-American families still hold to the Christmas traditions of their “Genitori e Nonni,” but when it comes to exchanging gifts, they too partake in the arrival of the jolly old man in the big red suit.