LITTLE ITALY NEWS JUNE 2009 EDITION

www.littleitalytroy.org

troylittleitaly@gmail.com

Troys Little Italy

by Michael Esposito
A new title from Americas leading publisher of local and regional history will be available in bookstores the week of June 8, 2009.
Local book signings are scheduled.
June 7

Italian Community Center

1450 5th Ave., Troy, Sunday, 2 - 4 pm

June 10

Little Italys Farmers Market

Hill St., Troy, every Wednesday, 3 - 6 pm

June 11

Troy Public Library

100 2nd St., Troy, Thursday, 5 - 7 pm

June 27

Market Blocks Books

290 River St., Troy, Saturday, 12 noon

Aug. 8

Borders Books
Crossgates Mall, Saturday, 1 pm

Mike first heard stories of the neighborhood from his parents. His mom was a sewing machine operator in Troys
garment industry and his dad was a fruit peddler who sold produce from door to door. Troys Little Italy is the
result of Mikes longtime interest in the neighborhood and his research into its history and the people who
brought to it their rich culture and their native traditions.
Arlene Bouras, Marion Field, Dan Lennon and Frank Visco assisted the author in acquiring, organizing and
compiling photographs and information during the year long process of meeting each week to assemble the book.
Local churches and organizations and hundreds of neighbors shared their treasured photos. Family and friends
shared their life experiences to help add substance to the book. Royalties from the sale of the book will be
donated to the Troy Public Library.
Join Michael Esposito at his 1st book signing at the Italian Community Center, June 7, 2009. 2 - 4 pm.
Refreshments will be served
Wine and Cheese
Hors doeuvre
Pastries

Wednesday is Troy Neighborhood Farmers Market Day

Beginning June 3rd, 2009, Troy will now have two Neighborhood Farmers Markets to
shop at. The markets will run back-to-back, starting at 10am to 2pm at Monument
Square in downtown Troy and continuing from 3pm to 6pm at the MarketPlace in Troy
Little Italy. Both markets will offer patrons a variety of fresh local produce, baked
goods, eggs, cheese, sweet and savory specialties, and prepared foods. Plants, arts, and
services, such as chair massage and energy medicine, can also be found at either market.

In-Season Local Produce

The cool, drier than normal early spring weather is effecting the availability of fresh produce at market. Asparagus, radishes, rhubarb and spring onions are the first to show up
on the tables, followed by lettuce, spinach, and other greens. Baby beets are slowly
emerging and will joined by the earliest of the peas. As for local fruit, June is the month
for strawberries with cherries tagging at the end of the month into July.

June 14, 2009

Italian Community Center, 1450 5th Ave., Troy
2 pm till ?
Music by Al Bruno

ay
D
g
Fla Festa
i
n
i
M

Pizza Fritte, Sausage & Peppers, Ziti & Meatballs, Pasta Figioli, Beer, Wine, Water, Soda

Neighborhood Watch Update

The last Neighborhood Watch Meeting
was held on Wednesday, May 20th at the
Freihofers Race Headquarters. Statistics
for the month of April are not available
due to a computer issue.
We had our regular review and update
of problem properties and neighborhood
concerns with Officer McDonald. The
major topics of discussion at the meeting
were noise, vandalism and graffiti. Based
on direct calls from residents, the TPD
conducted a noise abatement detail in the
area of 4th and Adams. Six tickets were
issued and there was one arrest as a result
of those efforts. The graffiti/vandalism is
a frustrating problem for all as it is extremely hard to catch somebody in the
act. The best we can do as residents is to
be alert for people in the act and report it
immediately. If you are the unfortunate
victim of this crime, please do your best
to remove it quickly. Graffiti attracts
more graffiti.
Thanks to everyone who participated in
our Earth Day clean up. We had a record
number of participants and parks, a
church and several very visual areas were
cleaned up. Additionally, several residents repainted the utility boxes and reduced graffiti in the neighborhood.
Thanks to DPU and DPU for assisting us
on that day with pickups and the paint for
the boxes. It all really made a difference
this year!
If you want to receive regular updates
through email and get crime alerts, please
send an email to sctroywatch@gmail.com. The next Neighborhood Watch Meeting will be on June 17th
at 6:00 at the Freihofers Race Headquarters at the corner of 4th and Washington.
Please bring a friend!

National Do Not Call Registry

The National Do Not Call Registry is
open for business, putting consumers in
charge of the telemarketing calls they get
at home. The Federal government created
the national registry to make it easier and
more efficient for you to stop getting telemarketing calls you dont want.
You can register online at:
WWW.DONOTCALL.GOV or call tollfree, 1-888-382-1222 (TTY 1_866-2904236), from the number you wish to register. Registration is free.

Italian Humor
Local Weed and
Seed efforts win
National Award!

Congratulations go out to all who volunteered at the VITA Site for the past two
tax seasons. Our site has won the
NATIONAL Weed and Seed
Coordination Honor Award!
Coordination is the essence of the Weed
and Seed strategy. It allows communities
to achieve better results more efficiently,
both in this particular effort and many
related ones. Therefore, in special recognition of Weed and Seed Communities'
successful collaborative efforts, CCDO
will honor Troys Westside Waterfront
Weed and Seed site for the successful
coordination of their Voluntary Income
Tax Center site. Only six sites throughout
the country are honored. The award will
be officially given at the National Weed
and Seed Conference in Florida mid July.
Special recognition goes out to all who
have helped with this huge endeavor: Peg
Alaxanian, Ken Rose, Colleen Goldston,
Marion Field, Dorcas Rose, Heather
Hamlin, Kristin Sweeter, Vince Mamone
and Joe Mazzariello of the Italian Community Center, Ray Piscitelli of the CYO,
Mickie Harrington, Anthony DiFiglio and
others. Because of their efforts, residents
of Troy were able to get their taxes done
locally for free by certified professionals
returning thousands of dollars to our community and encouraging people to file
returns.

Special Book Sale, Two Dates

$2 a Bag!
The Friends of the Troy Public Library
will be featuring a $2 a Bag book sale
at The BookCellar at the Troy Public Library, 100 Second Street, for all print
books, fiction and non-fiction, hardbound
and paperback, on Saturday, June 6th from
10 am to 2 pm. The sale will also feature
older edition, vintage books priced between $2 and $10 each. Most of the special priced books are being offered for
sale for the first time and are in fair to
good condition. The special sale date will
continue on Wednesday, June 10th from
10 am to 2 pm.

Sugar
Submitted by
Frank LaPosta Visco
Mrs. Ravioli comes to visit her son Anthony for dinner... who lives with a female roommate, Maria
During the course of the meal, his mother
couldn't help but notice how pretty Anthony's roommate was. She had long been
suspicious of a relationship between the
two, and this had only made her more
curious.
Over the course of the evening, while
watching the two interact, she started to
wonder if there was more between Anthony and his roommate than met the eye.
Reading his mom's thoughts, Anthony
volunteered, I know what you must be
thinking, but I assure you, Maria and I are
just roommates."
About a week later, Maria came to Anthony saying, Ever since your mother
came to dinner, I've been unable to find
the silver sugar bowl. You don't suppose
she took it, do you?"
Well, I doubt it, but I'll email her, just to
be sure." So he sat down and wrote
Dear Momma,
I'm not saying that you 'did' take the
sugar bowl from my house; I'm not saying
that you 'did not' take it. But the fact
remains that it has been missing ever
since you were here for dinner.
Love, Anthony
Several days later, Anthony received a
response email from his Momma which
read:
Dear Son,
I'm not saying that you 'do' sleep with
Maria, and I'm not saying that you 'do not'
sleep with her. But the fact remains that if
she was sleeping in her OWN bed, she
would have found the sugar bowl by now.
Love, Momma
Lesson: Never lie to your Momma
especially, if she's Italian
Little Italy/South Central in the news
The Record, May 21, 2009, Front page
and p4. Its farm-fresh at Little Italys
Markeplace by Tom Caprood with photos
by Tom Killips. The second season of the
open air farmers market is the featured
story. On May 23, p2, Saratoga farmer
Donna Mullen, who organized the popular farmers market along with Fourth
Street businesswoman Jean Krueger, is
featured in the Five questions column.

Photos
from our
Little
Italy
Archives

Josie DeFazio, Anthony DeFazio, Celia DeMaria Church

Anthony DeFazio and Monsignor John Patrick Carroll Abbing

These photos was taken on October 23, 1988 at the Second Annual Celebration of The Culinary Tradition of Italy to benefit the boys
and Girls Towns of Italy. It was called the LA FESTA DEI CUOCHI (THE FEAST OF THE CHEFS) and was attended by many local
dignitaries. Anthony, Josie and Celia were members of The Order of the Sons of Italy of America and worked on many fund raising
events and scholarship funds together.
Monsignor Carroll-Abbing, the founder of Boys and Girls Towns of Italy is only the 3rd non-Italian to be made an honorary citizen of
Rome. He was the first recipient of the Foreign Press Associations World Humanitarian Award and has been commended by Popes,
Prime Ministers and Presidents for his humanitarian and relief efforts.
Twenty years later their off-spring, Rocco DeFazio and Marion Church Field are working together to revitalize their neighborhood, Troy
Little Italy.

Mark your Calendars!

City-Wide Garage Sale
August 15th,
9 am to 3 pm

June Meetings
6/17 Neighborhood Watch 6 pm
Troy Little Italy
7 pm
6/18 Weed and Seed
5:30 pm
Roarke Center, 4th and State

To be held in the
Troy Public Market

Sign up before July 1st & receive:

Site of your choice (12 x 12)

An extra 6 square feet
3 Free entries into drawing

All for $20.00

Contact Andrea at 470-7369 or

Email: bdaley5@nycap.rr.com

Three wonderful Italian Voices

14 and 15 years old - Please watch and listen
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FqUkUjeF4-c

FLAG DAY
PARADE
JUNE 14, 1 PM

AT LIBERTY
The Saga of an Italo-American Family
in South Troy
by
Frank LaPosta Visco
Part 8: Working toward a goal.
On a bright Sunday afternoon in June of
1932, 237 seniors of Catholic Central
High School and their families gathered at
the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall for
their graduation ceremonies.
As the Principal, Father Burns, read each
name, the student would come forward
and receive a blue square with a document inside that they thought prepared
them for life. It was all going as smoothly
as the rehearsal, until the priest read the
name, Modesta Campobasso.
No one moved.
Father Burns glared at her. She glared
back. Someone in the audience coughed.
From another part of the resonating chamber came a giggle. The restlessness was
spreading. Finally, Sister Anna Joseph
approached the Principal and whispered
something in his ear. He spoke again.
Esther Campobasso.
As she finally rose from her chair, Esther
smiled at the nun, her homeroom teacher,
and accepted her diploma from Father
Burns. When Esther's smile finally broke
through, the applause from audience was
a thunderous release.
Things were back under control as the
roll call continued through the C's, and
when Eddie Case's name was called, he
and Esther exchanged knowing glances. It
was not missed by their parents.
The next day, Esther announced to her
her mother that she would not be working
in the Campobasso Confectionery store,
but would be taking a job as a sales clerk
at Frear's Bazaar, one of uptown Troy's
finest and most complete department
stores. As usual, there was a lot of arguing, none of it productive. Esther would
have her way. On the employment plan,
yes. But her living plan? That was different.
There was no way that Maria and Francesco would allow Esther to leave the
homestead and live independently in an
apartment with some of Esther's former
classmates. On this matter, Esther had no
choice but to give in, because the same
conversations were being conducted at
the same time with the other girls by their
parents. They wouldn't be allowed to
leave the nest until their wedding day.
Eddie went to work, too, at Cluett's, and

he willingly stayed at home, because he

planned to save as much money as he
could, to pay for the future that he and
Esther had devised.
It was a testament to their commitment
and passion that they never revealed their
plans to anyone else, and went to their
respective jobs happily, in a time when
demands were rigorous and amenities like
air conditioning, coffee breaks and overtime pay didn't exist.
Working conditions were better for
Esther than for Eddie. She got to dress up
every day and chat with the fashionable
uptown women who shopped at Frear's.
Esther found she enjoyed meeting people
and had a natural talent for selling. After
several months on the job, she prided
herself on being able to read the customer and anticipate each woman's needs.
Until one brisk winter day that year, that
is. An elegantly dressed woman sashayed
up to Esther's counter in the sleepwear
department. Practically dripping in expensive fur, which covered the latest New
York style dress, the woman asked to see
nightgowns for her girls.
It being the dead of winter, Esther dutifully gathered a selection of flannel wear.
The woman chuckled, No dear. Something a little more diaphanous? Alluring? You know enticing. For one of
the few times in her life, Esther was
speechless. Then, in a conspiratorial stage
whisper, the woman leaned toward her
and said, Sexy.
Confused but compliant, Esther produced the desired styles, and the woman
selected several, in different sizes. While
thrilled to be making such a big sale, the
nave salesgirl was still in the dark, until
one of her co-workers took Esther aside
while the sales slip and cash were wending their way through the pneumatic tube
system to the cashier.
Esther, she whispered. Don't you
know who that is? It's Mame Fay!
Esther's face turned almost as red as the
Chinese silk nightgowns with the long,
promiscuous slit up the side. When Esther
handed Troy's most famous madam the
receipt and the change, Mame looked her
over and told her, quite sincerely, You
know, honey, with your looks, you could
make a lot more money working for me
than for old Mr. Frear. And with a wink,
she was gone.
It was a story Esther would take pride in
telling but not until many, many years
later. At the time, she was too embar-

rassed, and concentrating on her secret

plan with Eddie, which was about to
shock everyone.
Copyright 2009 Frank LaPosta Visco
Next: In Part Nine, there they go.

Little Italy Real Estate For

Sale
1 FAMILY
191 Second St.
$549,000 Karen
892-1326
261 Liberty St.
$69,900 Harvey
466-1303
56 Havermans Ave. $155,900 James
724-2478
29 Jefferson St.
$79,900 Teri
371-4677
2 FAMIlY
186 Hill Street
$18,000 John
798-2819
121 Adams St.
$113,000 Thomas
618-8249
191 Third St.
$196,000 James
588-6755
226 First St.
$19,900 Robert
376-0265
190 Third St.
$128,000 James
588-6755
MULTI UNITS
263 Fourth St.
$89,900 Leon
727-7493
78 Hill Street
$109,900 William
331-4755
401 Washington St $164,900 Al
441-4353
COMMERCIAL
37 Ida Street
$109,000 Paul
369-1914
314 Fourth St.
$130,000 Al
441-4353
3 bedroom located in Little Italy. $800 a
month plus utilities. Contact Marion @
518-266-1406 or mvf1406@aol.com

Irish Mist Specials

Mystery Dinner Theater,, June 6, 7 pm
A Cruise to Die For
Dinner and Show $25/ person
Friday Night :
Karaoke with u-sing u dance
Buy your 1st drink by 10 pm and enter to
win lottery scratch offs or a $20 bar tab
Sunday Brunch 11 - 2 pm $15.95
Tuesday thru Friday:
A new special every day. Stop in!!!!