Public Employee Press

Italian Heritage Celebration
Contributing to America

The DC 37 Italian Heritage Committee kicked off its 11th annual celebration Oct. 5 with their traditional ribbon-cutting at union headquarters.

“It feels a little like Italy here,” said DC 37 Executive Director Lillian Roberts at the opening ceremony. “This union and the history of DC 37 were built on the backs of Italian laborers. We should applaud them for giving us such a great foundation to build on.”

That foundation was laid when millions of Italians came to New York in a huge wave of immigration in the early 1900s. Many of the women worked in the garment trades, and men in construction, where they helped found and build powerful unions.

As Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia tried to base city hiring less on politics and more on qualifications, many from the second generation entered the civil service andbecame the core of a number of DC 37 locals.

A proud tradition
Traffic Employees Local 1455 President Michael DeMarco, chair of the DC 37 Italian Heritage Committee, acknowledged the hard work of thecommittee members at the opening ceremony. “Without them I wouldn’t be standing here,” he said.

The committee coordinated the annual dinner-dance at Russo’s On The Bay, in Howard Beach, Queens on Oct. 14, and a tribute in the DC 37 lobby to distinguished Italian-Americans in sports, music, film and science.

At the Saturday dinner-dance, after some brief welcoming remarks from Roberts and DeMarco, about 400 union members and their families enjoyed an afternoon of delicious appetizers, tasty dishes and dancing to help work off the hearty meal.

Numerous local presidents and former committee Co-chair Diane Savino, now a state senator, joined the festivities.

“This is a tradition that we are very proud to share with everyone and we hope that it continues for years to come,” said DeMarco.

—Alfredo Alvarado