Come dressed to impress for a night to remember as we honor this year’s inductees into the Louisiana American Italian Sports Hall of Fame. The event will take place at Harrah’s Hotel and Casino New Orleans on Saturday January 25th, with cocktails and silent auction at 5 pm followed by dinner and presentation at 6pm.

This year’s National Honoree is former major league baseball player Johnny Giavotella. Local sports inductees include Frank Scelfo, Paul Stanton Jr. and Ray Culotta. We will also be honoring the following American Italians for their contributions to our culture and their respective fields: Eric Asher- Buddy “D” Media Award; Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg- Louis Prima Arts & Entertainment Award; Dr. Brett Cascio- Dr. John Adriani Medical Award; Paul Arrigo- Joseph I Giarrusso Civic Award; Louis Tallarini- Joseph Maselli Heritage Award; Captain Vincent Liberto (posthumously)- American Italian Veteran Award.

Tickets for this event are $250 for Gold preferred seating and $200 for Silver seating. Proceeds from this event benefit the American Italian Cultural Center and scholarships for college-bound high school seniors excelling in academics and athletics. To purchase tickets and program advertisements, please contact the American Italian Renaissance Foundation at (504) 522-7294 or [email protected]. The AIRF is a 501(c)3 non-profit, legally incorporated in the State of Louisiana. Contributions and event tickets are tax deductible.

The American Italian Renaissance Foundation operates as the American Italian Cultural Center and promotes the culture and heritage of the American Italian community by offering Italian language and culture classes, seminars, concerts, and events. This center is the leading institution preserving and celebrating the American Italian history of Louisiana. The impact will be felt through increased awareness of how the American Italian community has shaped local, regional, and national history and culture. Our values include education, inspiration, high quality, collaboration, and financial integrity. We provide programming opportunities that allow the community to come together to learn about the people, places, and events of our rich history and continuing significance.