POINTers IN PERSON Minutes
Chapter # 10 Central Texas/Austin
Laurie GUGINO Riester (#3878)
President Lin ONOFRIO Brinkman (#1388) opened the PIP Chapter # 10
Austin/Central Texas monthly meeting on October 22, 2003 at Round Rock
Library at 6:30pm with 19 people were in attendance.
Lin distributed the PIP Chapter 10 meeting schedule for 2004.
Lin passed around a sidebar from a local newspaper on two villas for sale in
Tuscany, with references to the movie "Under the Tuscan Sun".
Jeanie MARSALIA (#4251) attended a Marsalia family reunion this month, where she was given a paper bag of old family photos by a relative. Jeanie passed around some of the photos for the group to see. Jeanie has been searching for the name Marsalia on the internet, and she has also been in contact with two cousins. Jeannie is trying to find her grandfather's naturalization records.
Marie MASTRANGELO is searching for her parents' New York marriage application and also working with the New York 1925 census records.
Joe MASTRANGELO (#2614) looked for SALVAGGIO'S in his database for Marilyn MANISCALCO Henley and found one. Joe brought an example of a birth record for a Vincenzo LUISI from Putignano for help from the group in deciphering some margin notes. Joe also passed around a book called Firenze e Dintorni (Florence and Surroundings), published in 1964. Joe is still working on extracting records at the LDS and putting them into his database. Joe mentioned the next POINT Conference, which will be in Kansas City on October 5-7, 2004.
Sherry PACELLI Haddox shared with the group a family book on her grandmother 's GLIATTA side that she made. She is trying to find the birthdate for her grandfather, Dionisio (Dominic) PACELLI. The date is not listed on the documents she has (marriage record, naturalization certificate, death record, and 1910 census), so the group suggested she use the naturalization certificate to try to obtain the declaration of intention. Sherry brought a photo of her 6th cousin from Rome, Alessandra GESUALDI with her husband and two daughters.
Virginia MACRI Gerick (#2730) has been in contact with Laura SABATINO from Connecticut. Virginia was having a hard time finding her grandfather in the census records, but now she is finding names with many similar spellings - DI CERBO, DIRRO, DIMEO, etc.
Jim Gerick recently attended a very good Czech and Slovak conference. The 2005 conference is in Prague. Jim also recently discovered that Korbel Champagne is by three Czech people.
Warren and Eugenia ASSAIBENE Luken recently went to Branson, Missouri. Warren mentioned that there is a Polish fest on Sunday in Brenham.
Bill and Lin Brinkman just got back from a submarine reunion in Mobile, Alabama. At the reunion, Bill was elected president.
Marilyn MANISCALCO Henley (#1653) recently attended a Maniscalco family
reunion. Marilyn always puts together some sort of family information for
her reunions, and this time, she did a paper on the MESSINA and CULMONE
families from Poggioreale, Trapani, Sicily. Marilyn has been doing web
searches using the Harris County web site (www.cclear.nctx.net
Marilyn announced that her husband, Arthur, moved their company to Houston
at the end of September, and she will be moving back to Houston soon. She
brought two emails to share with the group. One was from Nicholas DIRUBBO
Jr., who discovered Don Villoni through a search of past POINT meeting
minutes. Don and Nicholas have discovered that they are related. The other
was from Don Villoni, who forwarded some family history on the
BONGIOVANNI/SARTIANO families of Sicily from a member of those families he
met in Georgetown.
Di CANNONE reported that she and husband Jamie and daughter Brianna are
headed to Washington, DC in the next couple of weeks to visit family.
Laurie GUGINO Riester (#3878) has confirmed a connection between her
grandfather's and grandmother's Gugino lines. Both lines descend from
Antonino GUGINO and Fortunata PARLATO, both of whom were born in Valledolmo,
Sicily in the late 1700's. Laurie is starting to work with marriage records
from Valledolmo through the LDS.
Carol MAINA Roam (#4623) has recently received military records for an aunt
and two uncles that she was waiting for, giving her additional family
information. She has written her first two letters to Italy - one to the
public office and one to the church - for marriage and birth records.
Don VILLONI (#3985) has been traveling extensively this year with his wife
Shirley. They have been in California, Hawaii, Ohio, Arizona, Michigan,
Virginia, and Florida. One of the highlights was a birthday celebration for
Don in Tucson with lots of family. Don is searching for BARONE and RIZZO
relatives, and is finding lots of people with those surnames. Don and
Shirley will be going to Germany for Christmas.
Dorothy MANGO ONOFRIO Lippencott announced that construction is complete on
the new wing of her house and she is very happy with it. Dorothy, Lin, and
Bill will have 22-24 people at their new home for Thanksgiving.
Scott Patrick (#4619) has learned that his MATTO surname is MATTA in Italy.
He continues to research the GARAGUSI and GARAGUSO surnames, and is still
searching for the town from which his ancestors came. Scott is also looking
for information on the ship Flashat.
The meeting adjourned at 8:40pm.
The next meeting is set for Wednesday, November 19, 6:30 - 8:55 pm.
Our chapter web site is at http://www.main.org/pip10/