Wednesday, October 21, 2009

ADDIO MI BELLA LOUISA



IVANO SAYS: The remembrance below on Louisa Presepi first appeared in the Santa Cruz Sentinel: www.santacruzsentinal.com

Louise J. Presepi, passed away Friday October 16, 2009 at Driftwood Convalescent Hospital. She was 101.

Louise was born in Davenport on July 10, 1908, the daughter of Battista and Candida Zanette Fadelli. She grew up in Santa Cruz and was a graduate of Santa Cruz High School. She attended business school and later began a long career at A.T&T where she retired as an administrative secretary.

She was described by her family as a very generous person who gave to numerous charities. She was a devout member of Holy Cross Catholic Church, the Sons of Italy, Italian Catholic Federation, Santa Cruz Old Timers and Retired Telephone Employees Association. She loved people and enjoyed attending numerous social activities. She enjoyed playing bridge, traveling and going out for meals. Never having a driver's license Louise walked most anywhere she needed to go.

She is survived by her cousins, Angela Zanette Marchesin and her husband Enrico of San Mateo, Larry Soletti and his wife, Barbara of Oakland, Virginia Soletti of San Mateo, Diana Wolfe and her husband Laurence of Portland, OR and Peter Fadelli and his wife Eda of Napa; she is also survived by numerous nieces, nephews, god children and her extended family in Italy. She was preceded in death by her husband, Amerigo "Piccino" Presepi, sister, Edith Petrini, brother, John Fadelli and her dear friend Elsie Tori.

A Mass of Christian burial will be celebrated at Holy Cross Church, 126 High St, Santa Cruz, CA, Friday October 23, 2009 at 11:00 am. The funeral procession will leave from Benito & Azzaro Pacific Gardens Chapel, 1050 Cayuga St, Santa Cruz, CA, Friday morning at 10:30 am. A vigil prayer service will be held at Pacific Gardens Chapel Thursday evening at 7:30 pm. Friends are invited to call at Pacific Gardens Chapel on Thursday from 4:00 pm until service time. Entombment will be at Holy Cross Cemetery, 2271 7th Ave. Santa Cruz, CA

The family wishes to express their deep thanks and gratitude to Dr. Michael Conroy for his dedication, warmth and fine medical care and to her caregivers and the dedicated staff at Driftwood Convalescent Hospital.

Contributions may be made to Sienna House, 108 High St, Santa Cruz, CA 95060 or to Oakland Elizabeth House, P.O. Box 1175, Berkeley, Ca. 94701.
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IVANO SAYS (CONT'D): Those of you who have read my book know that Louisa and her husband Amerigo (Piccino) Presepi were an integral part of the La Nostra Costa Story.
On page 38 I write: "When my father bought into Il Golce, there were six or seven partners,including Amerigo (Piccino)Presepi,the foreman. Coastal Italians often called the foreman il bosso [boh so], the boss. Piccino [pee chee no]was married to Louisa, a fine-looking and very amicable Italian woman. The one thing I selfishly regretted about Piccino and Louisa was that they had no children for my brother and I to play with."

I go on to say that although I personally liked Piccino, he was looked upon by the ranceri as a hard driving boss and not very well liked. This did not escape Louisa, who collared me at a social function a few years back and advised me that I was much too hard on her husband. It took me some time to soothe her feelings, but I think I succeed when I reminded her that her husband's role as a "bosso" su per la costa would not be forgotten because of the book.

Friday, October 09, 2009

ITALIAN FILM FESTIVAL NEWS

IVANO SAYS: FIGLIO DELLA COSTA LIDO CANTARUTTI HAS INFORMED ME THAT HE IS CIRCULATING THE FLYER BELOW AT HIS ITALIAN FILM FESTIVAL THIS YEAR.
MILLE GRAZIE, LIDO. SEMPRE AVANTI



LA NOSTRA COSTA (OUR COAST)



DID YOU KNOW THAT LIDO CANTARUTTI’S FIRST HOME WAS A WIND-BLOWN SHACK ON THE NORTH COAST OF SANTA CRUZ? READ MORE ABOUT LIDO AND HIS TENACIOUS CANTARUTTI FAMILY IN:

IVANO FRANCO COMELLI’S BOOK, “LA NOSTRA COSTA” (OUR COAST), AVAILABLE ON LINE AT: http://www.authorhouse.com/ OR ORDER AT YOUR FAVORITE BOOKSTORE.



THREE FRIULIAN FAMILIES: CANTARUTTI-COMELLI-TAURIAN



Taken in an artichoke and Brussels sprouts field on the North Coast of Santa Cruz, Lido is seated at extreme left. His brother Reno is seated next to him. Parents Guido and Evelina Cantarutti are standing directly behind them. (Courtesy: La Nostra Costa Photo Archives, C. 1947)

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“La Nostra Costa” (Our Coast) A Family’s Journey To And From The North Coast of Santa Cruz, California (1923-83), by Ivano Franco Comelli is published by Authorhouse (1-888-280-7715). For further information and reviews on his book, Ivano invites you to visit his website: www.lanostracosta.com-a.googlepages.com