Pam Young is wiz at getting organized; from a reformed slob’s point of view. Her latest book. The Joy of Being Disorganized”, is a must read.

I know, I know, you haven’t completed your shopping and Christmas is the day after tomorrow. I get to say, “I know,” because I really do. I’m a Sidetracked Home Executive and in case you don’t know, we SHEs are procrastinators.

So calm down and breathe, everything is going to be just fine. Get a pen and paper, sit down with your favorite drink and think. Your creativity is your special gift and that super mind of yours just waits for times like this to come to your rescue. Knock and it will answer.

Here are just a few of the last-minute ideas I’ve come up with over the years.

1. Give from your kitchen

Since I love to cook and I make all my salad dressings from scratch, I’ve often given the dry ingredients along with the instructions to add olive oil and vinegar (you can provide that too, but let the recipient shake them together later for a fresher gift). I save glass jars and quart jars are the perfect size for the recipient to add the oil and vinegar to the dry ingredients. You can also use those wine vinegar bottles for the oil and vinegar and put the dry ingredients into one of those cute little jars that sample jellies and honey come in when you have room service at a hotel.

Gifts from your kitchen are always welcomed. See what you can whip up to give.

2. Give money

Download Everybody Loves Money from my website for ten fun ways to give cash using stuff you’ve got around the house or from the grocery store.

3. Write a letter

I love to write letters to those I love and update them on how much they mean to me. Since we give money at Christmastime, adding a page with my love adds so much to the value of the gifts.

4. Stay away from the mall!

When you’re in a rush, the brain tends to give in to the pressure of noise, loud Christmas music and flashy displays. It just wants to get you out of the chaos and get to someplace quieter. If you must to go to Target or Walmart, wear earplugs. My daughter Peggy discovered earplugs when she was a young mother. She told me they were just like taking a tranquilizer.

At this point in time, it’s good to avoid stores that sell nothing but Christmas stuff. If you haven’t hauled out holly, it’s too late. And do NOT go to any stores throwing last-minute sales unless you want to end up in therapy or handcuffs.

5. Plan for just one stop

Before you head out spend at least twenty minutes making a list of what you need at the store. This thinking time will save you so much time when you’re out there. Pretend you’re back in Little House on the Prairie days and you have to get everything from Mr. Olson’s store. That will spark your creative mind as you look for what you need on that list you took time to make. Note: don’t leave it at home.

6. Give a gift of your time and energy

One year my son Michael gave his cousins a voucher he printed up on the computer to take them to a movie complete with treats. He told me later, that he should have given just the movie because the combination of movie and treats went way over his gift-giving budget.

You could make vouchers for your help with house cleaning, car washing, gardening, sewing, laundry, baking, baby sitting, pet walking, grocery shopping and such.

Be Kind

The most important thing you should do at this time is to be kind to yourself and don’t stress over this sacred holiday. And remember, like the words to one of my favorite Christmas songs, “It’s not the things you do at Christmas, but the little things you do all year long.”

For more from Pam Young go to www.cluborganized.com. You’ll find many musings, videos of Pam in the kitchen preparing delicious meals, videos on how to get organized, ways to lose weight and get your finances in order, all from a reformed SLOB’s point of view.

Pam is a reformed slob, and co-author of the best-selling book, Sidetracked Home Executives: from Pigpen to Paradise, which has sold more than a million and a half copies. But don’t be too impressed by the number as Pam is positive 750,000 disorganized moms, bought it, lost it and had to buy it again. With that book, she and her sister became known as the “Slob Sisters” and appeared on Oprah, Live with Regis, The Today Show, CBS Morning Show, Donahue, Geraldo and many other popular television shows throughout the country.

Pam has spoken to thousands of groups from a small klatch of women in a church basement to Fortune Five Hundred companies like Standard Oil and General Mills. She toured the country on media tours for Proctor and Gamble and American Express teaching with humor and insight. Her practical steps to becoming more organized and having clean, cozy, peaceful and happy homes have helped millions of women.

Pam and her husband Terry live in Woodland, Washington, high in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains. Together, they have created a new venture. With a major in drama (not in college, but in life) Pam has always been able to see with the eyes of a child. Writing a shelf of “self-help” books to inspire disorganized moms, Pam’s focus has always been on solutions to the challenges mothers have in life.

The video-based House Fairy Program on the Internet was designed to inspire and motivate children to keep their rooms clean and neat, have good manners, and help with the family chores. Pam’s hope is, “that we can help this next generation before they get homes of their own to trash, by letting the House Fairy inspire and motivate children and reinforce the desire of our magnificent moms to have happy, healthy, well-behaved children.” www.housefairy.org

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Pam Young is wiz at getting organized; from a reformed slob’s point of view. Her latest book. The Joy of Being Disorganized”, is a must read.

I’m always trying to figure out ways to use my creative mind to motivate me and then pass my discoveries on to you. I’m sort of like a walking SHE (Sidetracked Home Executive) research lab.

As you know, if you’re a SHE, you have a retarded concept of time and then it’s, “Holy Smoke! It’s December 23, Christmas is in two days!” So why not use your divine gift of imagination to quick-start your motivation?

Here’s my idea and it’s so simple, just pretend it’s December 23, and evoke a little panic and a good dose of adrenalin into your system. Because you’re a SHE, you know that familiar terror you’ve felt over years of last-minute shopping for holiday gifts. You’ve experienced that very un-Christmassy feeling you get from dashes to the mall with its irritating marketing to get you to buy “mine,” “mine,” “mine,” like those seagulls in Finding Nemo.

And don’t beat yourself up for knowing exactly how horrible that feels; according to the National Retail Federation, nearly 32 million people haven’t started their shopping by Dec 9! (I should get them on my mailing list.)

Just think about it, 32 million people just like you and me are procrastinators! It’s a pretty good guess that some of the folks you want to get gifts for are part of that 32 million. That’s what brings me to a great idea for you while you’re pretending you’re almost out of time. Those disorganized friends and family need something you can give to them! My book, The Joy of Being Disorganized! Go over the list of people you want to gift and pick out the ones you know are disorganized like you are.

Order that number of The Joy of Being Disorganized books. The cost for one book is $14.95 so I suggest adding a five or ten dollar bill as a bookmark to bring your gifts up in value if you wish. As soon as you order the books, get to the bank for some fresh currency as this is the time of year banks carry new bills. Also when you buy more than one book, the cost of postage and handling doesn’t go up so you really save money.

Once you’ve ordered the books and got the money at the bank TODAY, you can lift the fake feeling of being behind. Just think how fun it’ll be to cross people off your list and stop worrying!

I’ve written an autographed note that I’ll put in with your multiple orders, so you can add them to your book gifts. Consider it a Christmas note from the author. Here’s what the note says:

It’s my prayer that this book brings more joy your heart and into your home in the coming years. Joy is a gift from God and it has already been given. We just have to let go of struggling against our shortcomings, lighten up and find the blessings in them, for they are many.

You are a child of God, privileged to be here on this speck of a planet in the infinity of the Universe. You were born to be joyful, and if you are disorganized it’s a blessing in disguise. It was given to you as a gift. If this doesn’t make sense to you right now, you are in for a treat, for this book, given to you as a loving gift, will open your eyes to how precious you are!

Use the bookmark enclosed and don’t spend it until you’ve finished the book. If you promise to do that, it’s a good guess you’ll use the money to celebrate a new level of joy in your heart.

Merry Christmas,

           Pam

For more from Pam Young go to www.cluborganized.com. You’ll find many musings, videos of Pam in the kitchen preparing delicious meals, videos on how to get organized, ways to lose weight and get your finances in order, all from a reformed SLOB’s point of view.

More About Pam Young

Pam is a reformed slob, and co-author of the best-selling book, Sidetracked Home Executives: from Pigpen to Paradise, which has sold more than a million and a half copies. But don’t be too impressed by the number as Pam is positive 750,000 disorganized moms, bought it, lost it and had to buy it again. With that book, she and her sister became known as the “Slob Sisters” and appeared on Oprah, Live with Regis, The Today Show, CBS Morning Show, Donahue, Geraldo and many other popular television shows throughout the country.

Pam has spoken to thousands of groups from a small klatch of women in a church basement to Fortune Five Hundred companies like Standard Oil and General Mills. She toured the country on media tours for Proctor and Gamble and American Express teaching with humor and insight. Her practical steps to becoming more organized and having clean, cozy, peaceful and happy homes have helped millions of women.

Pam and her husband Terry live in Woodland, Washington, high in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains. Together, they have created a new venture. With a major in drama (not in college, but in life) Pam has always been able to see with the eyes of a child. Writing a shelf of “self-help” books to inspire disorganized moms, Pam’s focus has always been on solutions to the challenges mothers have in life.

The video-based House Fairy Program on the Internet was designed to inspire and motivate children to keep their rooms clean and neat, have good manners, and help with the family chores. Pam’s hope is, “that we can help this next generation before they get homes of their own to trash, by letting the House Fairy inspire and motivate children and reinforce the desire of our magnificent moms to have happy, healthy, well-behaved children.” www.housefairy.org

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Yonkers Historical Society’s Candlelight Tour of The Sherwood House, built in 1740.

Free tours of historic Sherwood House, 340 Tuckahoe Road, Yonkers, NY 10710. 

Listen to holiday songs performed by the Yonkers Male Glee Club;

Enjoy delicious treats and beverages; and

Do some holiday shopping at their crafts boutique.

The post The Yonkers Historical Society Invitation to The Sherwood House’s Candlelight Tours – Sunday, December 7, 2014, from 3 – 6 P.M. appeared first on Yonkers Tribune.

Barry McGoey, Esq., President of the I.A.F.F. Local 628.

YONKERS, NY — November 22, 2014 — Barry McGoey has once again been elected by acclamation to President of the Yonkers Firefighter’s Union, Local 628 of the International Association of Fire Fighters, AFL-CIO.   Barry McGoey’s name was put into nomination and seconded unanimously by all in attendance at Local 628’s November 5, 2014 General Membership Meeting.  No other members of Local 628 nominated themselves or nominated someone else to challenge McGoey in an election for President of the Yonkers Firefighters.  McGoey will serve another 3-year term of office commencing on January 1, 2015 and ending on December 31, 2017.

President McGoey had also been similarly elected by acclamation in 2010 and again in 2012.  Prior to being elected President of Local 628, McGoey served as Vice President for approximately 5 years, which included two stints as Acting President.

“I am extremely grateful and proud to represent the men and women of the Yonkers Fire Department and thank them for the trust they have bestowed upon me,” said McGoey.  “I look forward to continuing to do my best to represent each of the Yonkers Firefighters and I remain mindful that I not only represent individual members, but also their families and loved ones who rely upon them. The Yonkers Fire Department is a family and Local 628 is a family of many families.”

In 2012 Barry was named one of the Top 50 Irish Labor Leaders in the United States by the Irish Echo newspaper and in 2013 Barry was honored by the Yonkers Exchange Club for his leadership and public service.  In 2014 Barry was the honored guest at the Yonkers Police Athletic League’s (PAL) Annual Luncheon and at the Aishling Irish Community Center’s Annual Dinner Dance.

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“The Talk” Host Sharon Osbourne (left) sharing a laugh with jewelry designer Simone I. Simon (middle), and her husband rapper / screen star LL Cool J and his wife, Simone.

YONKERS, NY—November 21, 2014 — Macy’s welcomes jewelry designer Simone I. Smith and her husband / entertainment icon LL Cool J to the Fine Jewelry department at the Cross County Shopping Center for a dazzling jewelry show. Fans and customers alike are invited to meet Simone I. Smith and LL Cool J as they showcase Simone’s latest collection of SIS by Simone I. Smith earrings, bracelets, and pendants.

Each piece embodies strength, integrity and style, and is available in 18K gold, platinum or rose gold over sterling silver.

The first 200 customers who make any SIS purchase will have the exclusive opportunity to meet the jewelry designer and LL in person and have their picture taken. Plus, $1 of every purchase will go towards supporting the American Cancer Society.

This unique opportunity will take place on Saturday, November 22^nd at 2:00 p.m. at Macy’s Cross County, located at 800 Central Park Ave., Cross County Shopping Center, Yonkers, NY 10704, on the Main Floor, in the Fine Jewelry department.

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(L-R): Captain Robert Levine, Mario Sindona, Lt. Victor Rodriguez, and FF Thomas McKee. Lt. Rodriguez and FF McKee are two of the that who worked on keeping Mr. Sindona in this world. The other two firefighters likewise engaged in keeping Mr. Sindona alive in the life saving effort, FF Jamie Rooney and George Kehayas, were were unable to attend the reunion. Photo by and courtesy of Joseph Yedowitz.

YONKERS,NY — November 14, 2014, Thursday marked the one year anniversary of Mario Sindona heart attack and surviving the trauma. Mr. Sindona had stopped by Yonkers Fire Engine 310 to see the men who were involved in bringing him back to life. The Firefighters performed CPR and delivered lifesaving shocks using an automatic external defibrillator, commonly known as an AED.

Yonkers Fire Engine 310.

Mr Sindona came bearing gifts of thanks; he brought shirts for every firehouse member. The shirts were emblazoned with Fire Engine 310’s logo and the date, 11/13/13 and the word THANKS, under the logo.

Mr. Sindona has since returned to work for the City of Yonkers’ Sewer Department.

With his second chance at life, Mr. Sindona kept his promise to his daughter and went Skydiving with her this past August.

He is doing all he can to enjoy life.

The post Mario Sindona Has Lived for One-Year Since Yonkers Fire Engine 310 Crew’s Effort Brought Him Back to Life By HEZI ARIS appeared first on Yonkers Tribune.

The ALS Association Greater New York Chapter’s 20th Annual Lou Gehrig Sports Awards Benefit where Pat Quinn (Yonkers, NY) and Anthony Senerchia (Pelham, NY) were honored for their involvement in the creation of the Bucket Challenge. Anthony and his wife Jeanette are to the left of Derek with Pat and his wife Jenn are to his right.

NEW YORK, NY – November 14, 2014 — Close to 600 guests gathered Tuesday evening, November 11^th, at the Marriott Marquis for the ALS Association Greater New York Chapter’s 20th Annual Lou Gehrig Sports Awards Benefit.

The benefit raised $1,000,000 with proceeds going to the fight against ALS, commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease.

Honorees included former New York Yankee Don Mattingly, former New York Met Keith Hernandez, and former Pittsburgh Steeler Franco Harris.

Dorine Gordon, President & CEO of the ALS Association Greater New York Chapter said, “We are grateful to our supporters for their commitment over the last twenty years. We continue to fulfill our mission of fighting this terrible disease by funding research and providing care for our patients and their families.”

The Jacob K. Javits Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to BNY Mellon and accepted by BNY Mellon Chairman and CEO Gerald L. Hassell who was joined by Thomas A. Renyi, former Chairman and CEO of The Bank of New York.

“We are proud to support the ALS Association Greater New York Chapter as it helps lead the fight against ALS,” said Hassell. “It is an honor to receive such a distinguished award from an organization dedicated to saving lives from this tragic disease.”

In addition, Jennifer Steinbrenner Swindal, General Partner and Vice Chairperson of the New York Yankees and President of the New York Yankees Foundation and Liz Martin, Director of Team Partnerships, Steiner Sports Memorabilia, Inc., presented a check for $30,000, which was raised from a special New York Yankee game worn Jersey auction conducted by Steiner Sports. This special auction took place on July 2, 2014 in commemoration of the 75th Anniversary of Lou Gehrig’s Farewell speech.

Derek Jeter paid tribute to the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge Founders Anthony Senerchia, of Pelham, NY, Patrick Quinn, of Yonkers, NY, and Peter Frates.

Bob Costas served as Master of Ceremonies with Howard Cross serving as the auctioneer. Sports luminaries David Cone, Rod Gilbert and Tommy John were also in attendance along with actor Eddie Redmayne, who stars as Stephen Hawking in the upcoming film “The Theory of Everything”.

As one of The ALS Association’s leading chapters, the Greater New York Chapter serves patients and families throughout New York City, Long Island, Westchester County, the Hudson Valley, and Northern & Central New Jersey. The ALS Association Greater New York Chapter plays a major role in promoting the mission to lead the fight to treat and cure ALS through global research and nationwide advocacy while also empowering people with Lou Gehrig’s Disease and their families to live fuller lives by providing them with compassionate care and support. The ALS Association is the only national nonprofit voluntary health organization dedicated solely to the fight against ALS.  ALSA is a member of the National Health Council.

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Nothing to See Here

Something to think about.

America now produces an estimated half of the world’s child porn. Of all the global internet servers that host child sexual abuse websites, nearly half are located in the United States. An estimated 50,000 Americans, at any given time, are on-line trading images of child sex abuse.

These are the facts.

This production depends on the sexual abuse of American children.

Imagine, for a moment, the number of children raped since you finished your morning coffee in order to produce half the world’s child porn. Think about the children you know. Given the numbers, it is statistically impossible that you do not know a child who is being sexually abused in America today.

It might even be your own child. But you wouldn’t know any of this by following mainstream media.

The American media establishment hardly covers child sex abuse crimes at all compared, for example, with the media coverage of child sex abuse scandals and cover-ups at the highest levels in the British Isles.

When mainstream media does report on the story the message is: Nothing to see here. Move along, please. Yes, there are a few powerful voices here and there that defend the survivor or attempt to deepen the discussion but, by and large, American journalists tend to act as apologists for the sex abuser and move off the story as quickly as possible.

From former Penn State football coach Jerry Sandusky, to John Grisham’s recent comments, the the Steubenville High School rape case, the revived Woody Allen story, or former U.S. Senate staffer Ryan Loskarn’s case, the narratives being played out are the same old discussion: denial. Denial by the media. Denial by the perpetrator. Denial, particularly, by the general public that, often powerful white, men rape small children or spend their nights and weekends achieving sexual pleasure by watching videos, pictures and live-streams of child sex abuse.

CNN’s Poppy Harlow’s coverage of the Steubenville rape story in Ohio last year is a good example. Harlow generated outrage from social media activists when she expressed concerns that one year sentences for the young men who had raped an unconscious high school girl, and then shared videos and photos of this abuse, had destroyed the perpetrators’ lives. Harlow said it was “incredibly difficult… to watch what happened as these two young men that had such promising futures, star football players, very good students, literally watched as they believe their life fell apart.”

No mention or sympathy by Harlow for the girl who had endured the abuse and the images of her sex abuse spread for all to see on the internet. No discussion of how her life “fell apart.”

The media coverage of late Senate staffer Ryan Loskarn’s arrest for graphic and violent child porn, including the rape of a six year old girl in the woods by her father, is another example. Loskarn’s arrest and subsequent suicide, while awaiting trial, generated lots of ink by Washington DC journalists — many who knew Loskarn personally — but the coverage followed the standard script. Journalists expressed overwhelming sympathy for Loskarn but not one journalist asked what about the children in Loskarn’s videos?

Will the six year old girl raped in the woods by her father be rescued?

No one asked. No one wanted to know.

John Harwood, for example, a D.C. reporter for CNBC and The New York Times, tweeted “Feeling so sad about Ryan Loskarn. Knew him a bit as a reporter and liked him. RIP.”

I asked Harwood about the children in Loskarn’s child porn collection. Harwood’s response was “as father of daughters I’m horrified by that violent abuse. But I knew Ryan Loskarn & yes, I am sad for him & his family.”

I responded, “I appreciate that. As the father of daughters will you focus media attention on finding the 6 yr girl in Loskarn’s video? That’s all I am asking. It’s a simple & I think appropriate request. Given #Loskarn’s final words were to the children. No?”

Harwood never replied.

Child Porn as a National Security Threat

Over the past two years, I’ve been documenting the scope of America’s child porn industry and the apparent level of involvement by America’s national security and federal employees. Forbes, The Washington Times and others have published my research. Fox News and Canadian TV (CTV) invited me for interviews. My CTV interview went mini-viral as did my Forbes article. I was the first to ask, in 2012, if White House staff might have been involved in the Colombia Secret Service scandal.

I am now researching and writing a book: Child Porn Nation: America’s Hidden Security Threat. My starting premise is men, and increasingly women, are raping children, very young children, including infants and toddlers, and sharing videos, images, and live-streaming of this abuse at epidemic levels. These criminals are, by and large, are getting away with it because America refuses to move beyond our denial.

We are sustaining crisis-level numbers of seemingly normal, often powerful and successful men, and some women, involved in America’s child sex abuse industry; far too many of whom are federal or state employees.

It does not matter if the perpetrator is on the demand-side, with incessant appetites for graphic child abuse to achieve sexual gratification, or the supply-side of abusing children, often their own or children of friends and relatives, and selling this abuse on-line. Both supply and demand, which often cross over, have reached epidemic proportions and no one is talking about it.

My research is intended to be a wake-up call. The problem of child sex abuse and its cover-up is real. A generation of American children are being destroyed. If you think this only happens to other children, and your children are safe, you are sadly mistaken. Your children might be enduring sexual abuse right now while you remain dangerously ignorant. Ryan Loskarn’s parents never knew, until they read his suicide note, that he had suffered sex abuse as a child.

America’s appetite for child porn puts all our children at risk. Your children and mine. Whether you acknowledge it or not.

Dr. Paul Farmer, a humanitarian and personal hero, has said we must find the words to talk about the most painful subjects if we hope to have any positive impact on this world of ours. This is my attempt to find those words and open a subject no one wants to discuss.

That is, that while no one was watching, America has become a child porn nation and that puts us all at risk.

Dr. Lori Handrahan is a guest contributor. Her forthcoming book Child Porn Nation: America’s Hidden National Security Risk details America’s child sex abuse epidemic. Her Ph.D. is from The London School of Economics. She can be reached on Twitter @LoriHandrahan2.

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Mario Toglia (center, in white shirt) poses with fellow Calitrani Americans who came to hear his lecture. (L-R): George Rainone, Alexis Rabasca, Mantione, Richard Morris, Josephine Galgano Gore, Bernadette Codela Borea, and Fran Gautieri Brown.

 NEW ROCHELLE, NY – October 27, 2014 — On October 4^th the New Rochelle Public Library celebrated Italian Heritage Month with a special Power Point presentation by Mario Toglia who spoke about his determined search to find the roots of his family history. What started as a personal hobby eventually expanded to include heart-warming stories of immigrants from his parents’ hometown of Calitri, Italy, to the shores of America. Mr. Toglia began by saying he was influenced by “campanilismo” an untranslatable Italian expression that symbolizes a sense of identity, pride and belonging to one’s place of birth – or, in Mario’s case, a place of ancestral origin.

During the early 1930s, the Calitrani in Dunmore, PA, had their own dramatic club and put on various productions at the local high school. Here is a scene from a play on Christopher Columbus.

During his Power Point presentation of some 100 slides, Mr. Toglia touched on various topics in compiling his book project: the value of the Internet and the Calitrani website/weblist; attending social gatherings such as picnics and luncheons; setting up appointments for research and interviews; and finally coming to the significant realization there was a genuine interest on the part of the close-knit community to preserve their ancestors’ stories.

New Rochelle had a very large Calitrani immigrant colony. It was the site of the Circolo Ricreativo Calitrana that edited a weekly community paper, L’Eco Calitrana. Published from 1930 to 1942, this six-page newsletter had correspondents in each of its main towns of settlement and kept the immigrants united with each other and the hometown.

The camaraderie and exchange of information from a weblist prompted face to face meetings at Five Islands Park and luncheons at St. Joseph Church in New Rochelle where it became apparent that pride of their heritage was shared by many. As word of the project spread, he was invited to speak to the children of the original immigrants. In Dunmore, PA, as these “children” entered the hotel lobby with crutches, walkers and canes, Mr. Toglia came to realize that his new venture was a “race against time.”

Calitrani men who had settled in Washington, D.C., posed for this photo in 1906. Seated (L-R): John Capossela, Gaetano Codella, and Lorenzo Vallario. Tanding (L-R): Pasquale Cestone, barber; Michael Capossela; Pasquale Cestone, tailor, and cousin to his namesake, and Jim Codell, founder of Codell Construction Company in Kentucky. The child is Gaetano’s son Michael.

In many cases, the recollections from these old-timers opened up research in other venues. Jeanne Cerreta DeRosa spoke of her parents’ marriage in Bridgeport, CT, officiated by her uncle Canio, a Protestant Minister. Newspaper clippings provided by the Bridgeport Library led him to the Waterbury, CT, and residence of Uncle Canio’s second wife and widow of Congregationalist Minister Pasquale Codella, a music teacher. Another phone call to Waterbury connected him to a 90-year-old former music student of Codella who wrote a glowing account of the minister.

Gerardo Metallo immigrated to Stamford, CT at the turn of the 20th Century. A member of a theatrical group, he became a self-taught magician. Besides Connecticut, he was well known in the Calitrani colony of New Rochelle where he gave numerous performances.

In some situations, Mr. Toglia would meet other Calitrani descendents through chance meetings. While doing research at a history center, Leonard Kerr overheard him mention his mother’s maiden name: Cubelli. Mr. Toglia was there doing research on Joseph Cubelli. Once introduced to the book project, Leonard Kerr was able to gather and give him copies of old family pictures.

Gaetano Codella was a gifted artist who settled in West New Rochelle where his descendants still live. His specialty was scenery painting and church restoration. His artistic workmanship is most apparent in the Catholic churches of New Rochelle, especially St. Gabriel’s, Blessed Sacrament, and St. Joseph.

Mr. Toglia’s presentation lasted about ninety-minutes and covered the various communities in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, as well as Washington, D.C., with large settlements of Caltrans immigrants. Photographs, newspaper articles, and stories can be found in two books he edited: They Came By Ship: The Stories of the Calitrani Immigrants in America and Preserving Our History.

A third volume is due out this winter.

Share your pride in heritage and family by submitting your legacy to the Yonkers Tribune. Direct email to the Publisher /Editor: Hezi Aris

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An All-LEGO brick recreation of Picasso’s Guernica created by Legoland Discovery Center Westchester’s Master Model Builder Veronica Watson. Photo by and courtesy of Legoland Discovery Center Westchester.

YONKERS, NY – October 23, 2014 — In honor of Pablo Picasso’s birthday on October 25, Legoland’s Discovery Center Westchester’s  Master Model Builder Veronica Watson has built a recreation of the painter’s Guernica (1937) using over 800 Lego bricks. The replica stands 7 inches tall by 14.5 inches wide and took Veronica over a day and a half to create, with extreme attention paid to every detail of the painting.

Ruins of Guernica. The photographer is unknown. Photo courtesy of the German Federal Archive (Deutsches Bundesarchiv).

Probably Picasso’s most famous work, Guernica is certainly his most powerful political statement, painted as an immediate reaction to the Nazi’s devastating casual bombing practice on the Basque town of Guernica during the Spanish Civil War. The bombing of Guernica on April 26, 1937 was an aerial attack on the Basque town of Guernica during the Spanish Civil War, carried out at the behest of the Spanish nationalist government by its allies, the German Luftwaffe’s Condor Legion and the Italian Aviazone Legionaria. The operation was code named Operation Rügen.

The bombing is considered one of the first raids on a defenseless civilian population by a modern air force.

The number of victims of the attack is still disputed; the Basque government reported 1,654 people killed, although modern figures suggest between 126 (later revised by the authors of the study to 153) and 400 civilians died. Russian archives reveal 800 deaths on May, 1, 1937, but this number may not include victims who later died of their injuries in hospitals or whose bodies were discovered buried in the rubble.

Guernica shows the tragedies of war and the suffering it inflicts upon individuals, particularly innocent civilians. This work has gained monumental status, becoming a perpetual reminder of the tragedies of war, an anti-war symbol, and an embodiment of peace. On completion Guernica was displayed around the world in a brief tour, becoming famous and widely acclaimed. That tour helped bring the Spanish Civil War to the attention of the world.

This work was recognized as an amalgamation of pastoral and epic styles. The discarding of color intensifies the drama, producing a reportage quality as in a photographic record. Guernica is blue, black and white, 11 feet tall and 25.6 feet wide, a mural-size canvas painted in oil. The painting can be seen in the Museo Reina Sofia in Madrid, Spain.

Interpretations of Guernica vary widely and contradict one another. This extends, for example, to the mural’s two dominant elements: the bull and the horse. Art historian Patricia Failing said, “The bull and the horse are important characters in Spanish culture. Picasso himself certainly used these characters to play many different roles over time. This has made the task of interpreting the specific meaning of the bull and the horse elusive. Their relationship is a kind of ballet that was conceived in a variety of ways throughout Picasso’s career.”

Some critics warn against trusting the political message in Guernica. For instance the rampaging bull, a major motif of destruction here, has previously figured, whether as a bull or Minotaur, as Picasso’ ego. However, in this instance the bull probably represents the onslaught of Fascism. Picasso said it meant brutality and darkness, presumably reminiscent of his prophetic insight. He also stated that the horse represented the people of Guernica

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