Message From the President
Sons of Italy Trieste Lodge No. 4
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Robert A. Skaljin
President
September 7th, 2010
My fellow members, brothers and sisters: I write to you today humbled by the opportunity to lead the Trieste Lodge, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the responsibilities borne by my predecessors from whom I now take up the torch. I thank Past-President Ralph Vitello for his service to Sons of Italy Trieste Lodge, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown to me throughout this transition.
In the eighty-nine year history of the Trieste Lodge, thirty-seven members have served the club as president and worked diligently to uphold the guiding principles of LIBERTY, EQUALITY, and FRATERNITY. Those principles, since my initiation to the Trieste Lodge fifteen years ago, have always held for me a special meaning. Living these principles is what makes our membership unique and what has made us successful. As president, I remain faithful to the ideals of our forbearers and look forward to leading the organization along with the support of an extraordinary executive leadership team. We are the keepers of this legacy.
I officially welcome a new trustee to the executive, Joe Baiardo. I also thank those that put their names forth and ran in the June election. It is great to see so many individuals expressing interest in becoming part of the executive.
In June 2010, the newly elected Trieste Lodge executive members came together for an off-site meeting to reaffirm what makes up the greatness of our organization; identify opportunities for the future; and establish a direction for the next year. At the core of the executive feedback the following four areas of focus were identified:
- Fraternity
- Charity
- Communication
- Family
Over the upcoming year the executive will put our focus here. I look forward to sharing more details with you in the near future as we work on these four areas to further enhance our organization.
Since the elections back in June the Trieste Lodge membership has continued to be very active over the summer months.
- Our annual golf tournament held on June 24th at King’s Forest Golf Club was, as usual, a huge success with over 100 golfers. Congratulations to Br. Ralph Oliveri and the entire committee on a wonderful event.
- On June 28th the Sons of Italy along with Hamilton Police Department hosted the graduating class from Hamilton City Kidz for dinner at our hall. Congratulations to Br. Loris Pilot on pulling this event together and making it a success.
- The Sons of Italy FC Trieste and Roma Soccer teams have been competing every Sunday since the May long weekend in the Hamilton Senior Men’s Soccer League.
- Villa Italia’s annual “La Passegiatta” was held on Friday August 27th. A record breaking crowd enjoyed 5km run and an evening of food and entertainment on the grounds of the Villa. Congratulations to Br. Pat Mostacci and the entire committee on a fantastic event.
As part of Festitalia we will be having our regional food night “Cucina Tradizionale” on Wednesday September 29th, 2010 at our hall.
At our June meeting we announced the Italian-Canadian citizen of the year for 2010 is Br. Charles P. Criminisi. The award will be presented at a gala dinner on November 20th, 2010 at Liuna Gardens.
I look forward to seeing everyone at our first general meeting and annual steak dinner on Tuesday September 14th, 2010.
Fraternally yours,
Robert A. Skaljin
President