Letter from the President

Transcription

1 Winter 2012 Letter from the President Buon Anno! Welcome to out first quarterly Newsletter. I want to start by thanking each of you for your dedication to a novel idea and the challenges with starting a new non-profit organization was an incredible year full of challenges and accomplishments. I am proud to say we ended the year in the green with numerous 2012 events to look forward to, and new members joining us all the time. From our current list of 2012 events we hope to increase our activities with your interests and ideas. The news of our club is spreading! We, as Le Donne d Italia founding members, are at the forefront of the first Italian women s club in San Francisco. It is up to us to continue to invite all women of Italian decent to reconnect with their heritage and appreciate what our shared culture has to offer. When sitting down to write this letter I wanted to inspire us to look at each other as teammates. In my home, I have a list of quotes over my desk to remind me of my priorities and values. One of my favorites is, To listen is to learn, and to understand is to inspire source unknown. I feel Le Donne d Italia gives us the opportunity to listen and learn about our culture, our traditions, and our shared desire to pass these treasures onto future generations. By listening and learning with other women of Italian decent we will begin to truly understand Italian Female Heritage and the love we have to offer one another and our ancestors. This understanding inspires other women to learn about their culture and join our club. Whether sitting on a committee or asking questions about a specific region of Italy, we will continue to introduce each other to new knowledge. It is rare to find a true team: one that trusts each other, respects each other, and values the same goal; we have this. I am reassured and confident that we will achieve our goals together. As I said at our first meeting a year ago, I want women of Italian culture to recognize each other on the street, greet one another and build the bonds that will strengthen and preserve the community. I am proud to say we are on our way! Brave! Jennifer Consalvi President, Le Donne d Italia JOIN US! Sunday, February 26th Lunch 11:30a Bingo 1:30p Join Le Donne d Italia, San Francisco s new Italian Women s club, for lunch and an afternoon filled with fun and Bubbly & Bingo with cash prizes! Extra chances to win with our raffle! Lunch Special $30: salad, pasta & meatballs, dessert and prosecco plus 2 free bingo cards For more details and tickets: Antonette (415) or online at

2 2011 Accomplishments! 2011 Accomplishments In our first year we have: Had 11 social events which financially supported the local Italian community, attended 10 local Italian Events Supplied Volunteers for 4 San Francisco Italian Athletic Club Events Invited 100+ women on our list to meet and befriend other Italian women with similar interests Created a small sub culture that for the first time in the history of San Francisco is introducing local Italian women to one another Christmas Party & 1 Year Celebration Cafe Macaroni Italian Heritage Parade

3 Upcoming Events All events are subject to change - please check for updated events and details. February 2012 SunDAY 26 March 2012 THURSDAY 8 Bubbly & Bingo Doors Open: 11:30 AM SFIAC, Main Ballroom La Festa Della Donna - An Evening Honoring Women 5:00 PM - Drinks, Music & Mingling Taverna Aventine, 528 Washington Street TuesDAY 20 Member Meeting 7:00 PM SFIAC, 3rd Floor Book Club Meeting 6:00 PM *before member meeting SFIAC, 2nd Floor Card Room APRIL 2012 TuesDAY 17 Member Meeting 7:00 PM SFIAC, 3rd Floor Book Club Meeting 6:00 PM *before member meeting SFIAC, 2nd Floor Card Room SUNDAY 29 Spring Ballet Social - Company C Contemporary Ballet Fort Mason Center, Cowell Theater Volunteer! If you are interested in becoming more involved with Le Donne d Italia please consider joining one of our committees or our Book Club. Il Giorno delle Donne please contact Jennifer Consalvi at jconsalvi@ledonneditalia.com Book Club please contact Lori Viti at lviti@comcast.net Fundraising/Sponsorship contact Melissa Folmer at melissa.folmer@gmail.com Volunteer Committee contact Bernadette Festa at bfesta07@gmail.com

4 Proud Member Story I could not be more excited about being a member of Le Donne d Italia, and wanted to share a story from my experience of being a member. I joined for a few reasons: to stay connected and learn more about my Italian culture, meet new people, and be part of the Italian community (especially after moving into North Beach). After attending a few Le Donne d Italia meetings a Book Club was created. I was not initially interested (I m not much of a reader). However, at one of the membership meetings they announced the name of the monthly read, The Lost Ravioli Recipe of Hoboken. It immediately caught my attention; I love ravioli s! The book is a great story about the author, Laura Schenone, who is a 6th generation Italian searching to find her family s ravioli recipe. She seeks out various people including distant family members and friends, and even trips to Italy to uncover the recipe. The ravioli making process includes creating your mound of flour, breaking eggs, kneading the dough to perfection, creating the filling, rolling the dough and folding it over the filling to cut you perfect ravioli. This immediately struck a nerve. Being a first generation Italian, I realized what the author was searching for was an amazing tradition I grew up with. I suddenly realize what a rare and incredible privilege it was to see this old tradition first hand: my family s recipe came right off the C. Colombo ship that departed from Genova to New York City in 1956 with my Nonna Gabriella. Nonna Gabriella passed away on December 14, 2009, and making ravioli s was a Christmas tradition for her. The raviolis are so time consuming that she usually made enough to freeze, so we could eat them throughout the year. During her final years, her ravioli s made fewer appearances, and when she passed they were not part of our Christmas meal in 2009 or After reading this book, and knowing that my Dad, two Aunts and Uncle knew the recipe, I was inspired to organize a ravioli making day with our family. It was a two day process. Day one; my sister, cousin Jennifer, Aunt Luisa and I went to my Uncle Adolfo s house to make the sauce and filling. This included three different types of meat for the sauce and filling, a grinder to process the cooked meat for the filling, along with a few other ingredients, including my favorite, pine nuts. Day two had the entire family working together: we all made our own individual balls of dough (which takes a good amount of time), chilled it for a bit, and then rolled out the dough and created the ravioli s. WOW! What a process it was! It was a great bonding experience and a beautiful tribute to our beloved Nonna Gabriella. We all kept saying, I can t believe she did this all by herself! She never said anything about the process, but repeatedly told us to Mangia! over the dining room table whenever we ate them, or really anything she cooked for that matter. She was an amazing and selfless women, whose kindness and caring ways were done naturally. After this experience we all agreed that Ravioli Making Day should be an annual tradition for our family; to honor our Nonna and to prepare for our Christmas Day meal. At the end of the day I don t know if this amazing family bonding experience would have happened without the inspiration of this book, through Le Donne d Italia s book club. I love my family so much, and doing something like this filled me with such joy and pride. This type of inspiration and culture experience is exactly why I joined Le Donne d Italia which created something so much more than I ever expected. I encourage anyone thinking about joining to join! Be open, and bring your ideas. The opportunities are endless, and you never know what affirmative and upbeat experiences it will bring. Kimi Isola Proud Member & Secretary

5 Member Highlight For our first Featured Member article we as officers did not have to look far for an exemplary member of Le Donne d Italia. We would like to honor Antonette Machi for her hard work, dedication, leadership, and kindness. In 2011 alone, Antonette has attended almost every meeting and volunteered at numerous events far exceeding our 20 hour per year requirement. Antonette always has a contagious smile, supportive words of encouragement, and thoughtful constructive criticism help us to continue to shape and strengthen our organization. She has welcomed new members while volunteering at City festivals. She has been involved in the Italian community through her role as Committee Chair of Bubbly & Bingo. She and her committee have worked many hours to ensure that our first Bubbly & Bingo fundraiser will be a huge success spreading love of our culture and raising money to support upcoming events. Antonette, we would like to thank you for everything you have done for our club. You are heading up our first community event and helping Le Donne d Italia pave the way for other committee heads. You are inspiring the members of this club to become more involved and take on leadership roles. Grazie! Cucina Italiana Featured Recipe: Ribollita 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus some for drizzling 1 onion, chopped 1 carrot, chopped 4 ounces pancetta, chopped 2 cloves garlic, 1 minced and 1 whole 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1 tablespoon tomato paste 1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes 1 pound frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry 1 (15-ounce) can cannelloni beans, drained 1 tablespoon Herbs de Provence 3 cups chicken stock 1 bay leaf 1 (3-inch) piece Parmesan rind 4 to 6 ciabatta rolls, halved lengthwise or 1 loaf, sliced Grated Parmesan, for serving Have a favorite Italian recipe to share? it with a short story of why it is special to you and a photo if you have one too! jdondero@ledonneditalia.com Heat the oil in a heavy large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, pancetta, minced garlic, salt, and pepper. Cook until the onion is golden brown and the pancetta is crisp, about 7 minutes. Add tomato paste and stir until dissolved. Add tomatoes and stir, scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon to release all the brown bits. Add the spinach, beans, herbs, stock, bay leaf, and Parmesan rind. Bring the soup to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Drizzle the ciabatta halves with olive oil. Toast until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and rub the top of the toasts with the whole garlic clove. Place the toasts in the serving bowls and ladle the soup over the toasts. Sprinkle with Parmesan and serve immediately.