Guilford | Arts & Culture | Youth Arts Journalism Initiative
Natalie Flanders and her daughter Audrey. Ruby Szekeres Photo.
Behind Guilford’s St. George Catholic Church, Natalie Flanders and her daughter Audrey took in a cluster of tents, attendees buzzing happily beneath them. The song “Bella Ciao" swirled around them, mingling with the aroma of meatballs, lasagna and simmering red sauce. The slowly setting sun drenched everything in a golden light.
It was their first time at the town’s now-beloved Italian Festival, an annual tradition hosted by the St. George Men’s Group that turns a decade old this year. Held behind St. George Church, the fest brought out hundreds of families for a celebration of Italian food, music, and culture, from Tony V and the Centerline Band to a grape stomping competition.
“I just like seeing people here doing what they love.” Flanders said, hugging her daughter. There to support Audrey’s brother, who was working that night as a volunteer, Flanders lauded the event as fun for both Italian-Americans like herself and all attendees who found their way there. She added that it might inspire her to look further into what the Guilford community has to offer.
Bob Mongillo.
The festival, which replaced an Oktoberfest that became too big for the church, has grown tremendously over a decade. Ten years ago, “the festival was just a couple pop up tents,” recalled St. George Men’s Group President James Mancini. But each year, it continued to grow, with more attendees coming through word of mouth.
With a budget of roughly $45,000, the 60-member group now brings back the same merchants each year, with the addition of games, food vendors and musical artists that are meant to be family-friendly. Several group members, as well as people from the church, step up as volunteers.
“I can’t believe this is the tenth year doing this,” Mancini said. “I like seeing people come together in this community. It feels good seeing people, buying food, listening to music, playing games and interacting with each other.”
The group donates whatever it doesn’t spend, as well as 100 percent of festival earnings, to a charity which differs each year. This year, the money went to Sound Life Connections, an organization that works with adults who have disabilities.
At the far corner of the festival, there was an area set up for families and friends to play bocce, an Italian game played with two sets of four balls and a smaller ball used as a marker.
The organizers used wood to outline two rectangular areas, so two teams or parties could play at the same time. People watched from the sidelines as players threw the bocce balls with all their might. The game resembled bowling— but instead of knocking over pins, the goal was to throw the balls as close as possible to the small marker ball to get points.
Bob Mongillo, a member of the St. George Men's Group, smiled as he ran the bocce corner and several other games. Mongillo instructed people who were new to bocce how to play. People cheered whenever someone threw their ball close to the marker, while others on the opposing team frowned. Many of the people playing had been to the festival in past years and were excited to talk to newcomers about the game.
“It’s a lot of work to put everything in place for this festival, but it is amazing how it all comes together in time,” he said. Mangillo’s favorite part of the festival is seeing the people and his favorite part of Italian culture is “the variety of different food,”he said.
Eddie, who did not wish to share his last name.
There were activities for everyone, even young children. Across from the food stands, a SpongeBob SquarePants bounce house and a bounce slide invited some of the youngest attendees to join the festival fun. Kids shrieked with joy as they bounced and slid, their parents smiling from the sidelines. There was a small area where there were tables set up for families to sit at so the parents could eat and talk while the children played.
Nearby, food vendors offered both Italian cuisine and more American dishes such as ziti and meatballs, vegetarian and meat lasagna, meatball subs, hamburgers and some seafood options offered by The Place, a restaurant in Guilford. That’s where this reporter found Eddie, a festival first-timer who said he was amazed by the flavor of the meat balls.
“Even though the line was long, The food was worth the wait,” he said. “Italian culture has wonderful art and customs, but their food is outstanding.”
At Anna Smith’s dessert stand nearby, a box overflowed with plain and chocolate chip cannoli, the desserts in such high demand that she enlisted the help of friend Stephanie Blaha to help get them to eager customers. The two have been selling cannoli at the festival for a decade now—and see no reason to stop after this year.
“I have so much fun doing this,” Blaha said, turning to Smith who agreed with her.
This article comes from the 2024 Cohort of the Youth Arts Journalism Initiative. Ruby Szekeres is a sophomore at the Sound School.