POINTers IN PERSON REPORT
Chapter #10-Texas, Central Texas/Austin
Marilyn Maniscalco Henley (#1653)
Lin ONOFRIO Brinkman (#1388) opened the monthly POINTers IN PERSON meeting on Friday, April 25, 1997 at 6:30 pm at Bank One, Round Rock, TX, with 16 members and guests. Everyone introduced himself and gave his family surnames. Lin reported a family puzzle that involved finding out more about the names FOSCO of San Angelo en Formis, MONACO of San Prisco, and ONAFRIO of Faicchio, all of Casserta.
Lin introduced guest, Joe ALESSI (3362) of Round Rock. Bill Brinkman told of their excursion to the Dallas Library and research successes with his family and their dinner with the Dallas Onofrio's, originally of Kansas City.
Zina VERSAGGI Graalfs (#3336), back from Florida, reported that she is still waiting for a reply from Italy and from her Guarisco uncle in Louisiana.
Eugenia ASSAIBENE Luken is planning a trip to the FHC to research passenger ships to New York after she and Warren return from Brooklyn, where Warren will research his grandparents.
Sheila BAYHA Dugosh introduced daughter Danielle and told us about her new grandson, William David Petersen, born April 9 to another daughter.
Frank and Bert Henry (INNARINO) (#3258) back from visiting Bert's family in Florida and South Carolina are leaving for Pittsburg where they will look for more information on Frank's Innarino's.
Virginia MACRI Gerrick (#2730) has not been able to find her mother's family by searching Connecticut soundexes and will begin reading the New Haven census by area & name. Jim found his father's baby sister near Waco.
Joe and Marie MASTRANGELO (#2614) back from New Orleans researching his VITRANO and PIZZOLATO family, showed neighborhood and church photos of the Gretna area where they lived. He is still searching for ship information on Rosario Pizzolato, but announced that PIP member, Marilyn found records in Poggioreale, Sicily that proved it was the hometown of his Pizzolato's.
Joe also reported that he has received more records and a Stato di famiglia from Putignano, Bari of his grandfather's two sisters. He passed out Italian travel information collected from PIE messages. At his request, NAIF sent membership packages and Ambassador magazines for our group.
Joe ALESSI (#3362) briefly outlined his family research. He has the current family information up to date and is now ready to search for Italian records. His family settled in Philadelphia. His surnames and towns are: MANCINI and MATTOZZI, from Barisciano, Laquila; ALESSI and COLLETTI from Cianciana, Agrigento, Sicily; BONDI, and PERCANTI from Sicily; GIANENELLO?, IAGNEMMA? and DINARDO from Italy.
Marilyn MANISCALCO Henley (#1653) discussed a possible matching book fund with the Austin Genealogy Society to obtain the Italians to America series for the State Library. She announced that the PIP group will have a regular meeting notice in the monthly AGS Newsletter and reported on the recent AGS workshop presented by Patricia Law Hatcher of Dallas.
Marilyn proudly displayed her St Joseph's Day poster and new tourist brochures she received from Poggioreale, Sicily. She and her husband and son toured the Messina Hof winery in Bryan with her son's fraternity chapter with the owner Paul Bonarrigo (originally of New York) and his wife giving the tour. She told about a book "The Mafia of a Sicilian Village, 1860's-1960's" by Anton Blok that Johnny Grizzaffi of Bryan told her about which has a photo of two Grisafi's and two Maniscalco's featured in one section.
Marilyn had extra lira for any member needing to purchase some. The March PIP minutes and Family History film listings book were passed around.
Lin announced the next meeting: Wednesday, May 21, 1997, Bank One, 6:30 pm.
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