POINTers IN PERSON Minutes
Chapter # 10 Central Texas/Austin
Marilyn MANISCALCO Henley (# 1653)
Lin ONOFRIO Brinkman (# 1388) opened the monthly POINTers In Person
meeting at 6:30 pm on May 23, 2001 at the Round Rock Library with 22 members
and guest attending. Lin announced that member Maria TONTI Schulze''s knee
surgery was successful and welcomed back Lori TROIANI. Semi annual
dues were collected.
Lin read an email from Laurie GUGINO Riester (# 3878), which said that she had tried to get in touch with the actress Carla GUGINO, who is a cousin. However, a different Carla Gugino received the mail and she forwarded it to another Gugino, who is researching the family, and who turned out to be Laurie''s grandmother''s second cousin. She is sending Laurie a photo of her grandmother''s parents. Laurie thanked Lin for prompting her to write to the actress cousin.
Marilyn MANISCALCO Henley (# 1653) reported that she had received new
ship records for a VIVIANO connection, from Partanna, and for her great
aunt, Antonia MESSINA and her husband, Simone WEIDO, from Poggioreale.
Turns out
that Simone Weido sailed from La Harve France even though he was from
western Sicily. Marilyn, her husband and mother are planning a late September
trip to Alia and Poggioreale Sicily. Many of the Sicilian towns have web
sites and include tourism. She received the video of Alia and said it was
good, but in Italian so she couldn''t understand it. She announced
that her daughter Lisa and husband Brian are expecting their first
child at the end of December.
Pat OXLEY (# 3713) told about her recent visit to Ellis Island and the experience of researching there. She and her group ate at Positano Restaurant in Little Italy and loved it.
New member Carol MAINA Roam found out about the PIP group from the Family History Center and the Austin Genealogical Society. Her surnames and towns are ODDONO and BOGGIO from Settimo Rottaro; CALVI and OBERTI from Lenna; and MAINA and AIMAR from Livorno Ferraris.
Marie CAMPAGNA Anderson and her daughter Kathy Nichols shared their surnames of CAMPAGNA, MARGAVIO and ANZELMO, all from Montemaggiore Belsito, Palermo, Sicily.
New member Sharon Fleming reported that she and her husband had recently visited the town of Miscano where her RICCIO, CATELFRANCO, PETRUCCELLI and ALTIERI families were from before immigrating to Bridgeport Conn. She is also researching AGRELLA, but is unsure of their Italian town.
Angelo GATTOZZI announced that he is having a house built and they should be able to move in next month.
Bill Brinkman found death information on a relative in New York and contacted someone in NY who he met on the web, who is sending him a photo of the headstone that he took for Bill.
Augie TROIANI told us more about John COSTA, the first Italian to settle in Austin.
Don VILLONI (#3985) joined a computer genealogy group in Sun City and is waiting to hear the August date of the VILLONI family reunion, to be held in Cleveland. Lin and Bill suggested that he take a family chart to display to encourage others to fill in the blanks.
Joyce TIANELLO Snodgrass will also be visiting family in Ohio in August. Her cousin is searching the Ellis Island site for their grandfather Domenico TIANELLO and is trying to verify Domenico''s mother''s name Armina GIANZANTO. Her cousin also called Joyce''s father for family information. Joyce needs some help to order film from the FHC.
Virginia MACRI Gerick (#2730) found her grandparents on a soundex. She read excerpts of two books in the PIP Library, Unto the Sons by Gay Talese and Dances with Luigi by Paul E. Paolicelli and showed donations of other books. She also explained the TX Share Library Card program. Virginia relayed the history of Planter''s Peanuts, founded Amerdeo Obici wth Mario Pepuzzi in Wilkes Barre, PA in 1906.
Jeanie MARSALIA (#4251) found a death date for an aunt in the Texas vital records and received a passenger index for her grandmother and her brother.
Sheila BAYHA Dugosh (#4365) announced a possible PIRAINO family reunion in May.
Joe MASTRANGELO (# 2614) told how his signature line listing his family names and towns that he uses on PIE and COI mail lists messages resulted in a contact by an attorney in Lake Charles, LA. Joe stressed patience in trying to get onto the Ellis Island search web site. He found an Angelo Mastrangelo whose sister Angelina was married to a SPORTELLA. The date matched one on her Alien Registration Card. Joe also identified the relationship between a Mastrangelo aunt who married a PUGLIESE, who was her mother's step nephew.
Next meeting is Wednesday, June 27, 6:30 pm at Round Rock Library.
The next quarterly potluck meeting is Saturday, July 21 at 1 pm, Round
Rock Library.