The Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans will present Chicago Cubs executive Michael Lufrano with its prestigious Joseph Cardinal Bernardin Humanitarian Award at a gala on June 17 at the Loews Hotel in Rosemont. “During his 12-year tenure with the world champion Chicago Cubs, Mr. Lufrano has built strong bonds of trust with the community and...

John Idler, president and general manager of ABC7 Chicago, and Alison Pure-Slovin, Midwest director of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, will be honored at the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans’ annual media luncheon on May 18. Idler will be given the Dante Award, which is bestowed on a member of the media who lives up to Dante Alighieri’s call...

The Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans and Istituto Italiano di Cultura put Italy’s best foot forward on March 5 during Navy’s Pier’s Neighborhoods of the World celebration. What an appropriate name to promote all the diversity of Chicago. Our array of ethnic communities is presented for thousands of spectators who pass thru Navy Pier on an...

As I sat to write this article about being elected president of the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans, I was struck by how life has come full circle. As a child of immigrants from Sicily, I have marveled at how far our family has come since arriving in the United States in the mid-1950s. Like others before them, they were seeking good jobs...

The Women's Division of the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans is offering scholarships in the amount of $2,000 to young ladies of Italian heritage, who are graduating at the end of the 2016-2017 school year. The scholarship award will be presented on April 26 at the scholarship benefit fashion show and dinner to be held at the Drury Lane O...

The first meeting of the 2017 term of JCCIA officers was called to order at Trattoria Poretta. Over 70 people were in attendance, representing Italian organizations throughout Chicagoland. Among them were the Italian Chamber of Commerce, UNICO, ARSA, Italian American War Veteran, Italian American Executives of Transportation, Italian American Human...

We are pleased to announced the 2017 Columbus Day Parade will be Monday, October 9, 2017 on State Street. Thank you to everyone who celebrated the 2016 Columbus Day Parade with us. The parade can be viewed here on ABC7’s website. For nearly half a century, the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans has sponsored Chicago’s Columbus Day celebrati...

For the seventh consecutive year, Navy Pier will proudly host Neighborhoods of the World, a free seven-week series that celebrates the rich tapestry of Chicago’s diverse communities. (navypier.com/neighborhoods-world) Under the auspices of the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans and the Istituto Italiano di Cultura, the culture, food and cra...

The 2017 Dante/Mazzei Awards – Thursday, May 18, 2017 at Galleria Marchetti. Each year, the Human Relations Committee presents the coveted Dante Award to a member of the local news media who has answered Dante Alighieri’s call to be “no timid friend to truth.” Past recipients have been Irv Kupcinet, John Madigan, Hugh Hill, Dick Kay, Joan Esposito,...

The Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans announces its 2017 scholarship applications. Please click here for details. In 2016 the JCCIA set up an earthquake relief fund to help the victims and rescue efforts in Amatrice, Italy. In December the JCCIA sent more than $36,000 to the City of Amatrice. Thanks to Chairman Ed Burke and Alderman Marge...