Ferragosto 2024: A Resounding Success

AMHS family and friends enjoy Ferragosto 2024 at Fort Ward Park, Alexandria
Credit: Sam Yothers

On Sunday, August 18, fifty-four (54) AMHS members, friends and family descended on Fort Ward Park in Alexandria, Va., for the Society’s annual Ferragosto picnic, which has been an AMHS tradition for more than 15 years.

All who attended were gratified that the weather cooperated as, leading up to the picnic date, there was a high probability of thunderstorms and high winds. Instead, the group enjoyed a dry and sunny day. There was an abundance of food that was shared, along with friendship and lots of laughter. There was even a game of pass the football with young and old!

This picnic was especially bittersweet for the author of this post, as it is the last picnic that she and her husband, Sam, will organize. On December 31, 2024, Maria will be retiring from the Department of Commerce after 32 years of public service. Upon retirement, she and Sam will focus on selling their home and relocating to the Asheville, North Carolina area, to be near his grandchildren, most likely by June 2025. Organizing the picnics, especially since relocating them from Villa Rosa in Mitchellville, Md., to public parks in Alexandria, has been a highlight of our involvement with the Society – an event that brings the Italian-American community together. Also, adding to the special nature of this year’s picnic was that my father and mother, Lucio and Edvige D’Andrea, were able to join us, thanks to my brother Paul who brought them. My parents are a very young 91 and 90 years, respectively. We took a moment of silence to honor the passing of two very important Society members: Omero Sabatini, a Past President of AMHS who passed away on March 5, 2024, at the age of 92; and Joseph D’Andrea, brother of Lucio, who passed away on December 23, 2023, at the age of 94. Both fine men left an indelible mark on AMHS.

As my husband and I bid “arrivederci” to Ferragosto, we trust the tradition will continue under “new management!”

To find out more about the origins of Ferragosto, celebrated in Italy every year on August 15, and how it is celebrated, see 15th of August: origins and facts about the Italian Tradition of the “Ferragosto” | Visititaly.eu