From the bocce players in neighbourhood parks to the family-run shops, bakeries and cafés that line Commercial Drive, Vancouvers Italian community is one of the most prominent in the city.
But, on a recent Sunday, you didnt need to have roots in Naples, Friuli or Sicily to enjoy la dolce vita.
Several blocks of Commercial Drive were closed to traffic for this years Italian Day. Thousands of people spilled onto the sidewalks and streets to enjoy Italian opera and fashion. And it seemed like every local business that could get its oven mitts on a barbecue had sausages on the grill.
The annual event is a reminder that the Italian community has helped make Vancouver the vibrant, multi-ethnic city it is today.
Another reminder comes in the form of the Italian Business Excellence Awards. Each year the awards acknowledge at least some of the contributions by local Italian business people.
This year, at a dinner and ceremony held at the Italian Cultural Centre tonight (June 21) and MCd by CBC News anchor Gloria Macarenko, recipients will include Wendy Lisogar-Cocchia and Sergio Cocchia, owners and managers of the Century Plaza Hotel & Spa, and Bob Lenarduzzi, president of the Vancouver Whitecaps FC.
Both Sergio Cocchia and Lenarduzzi are first-generation Italian-Canadians whose parents came to the New World to create a better life for their families.
My grandfather came here pre-World War One, says Cocchia, who was born and raised in Trail, BC, a town with a large Italian make-up.
The Italians were the labour force immigrating to Canada at the time, says Cocchia. His grandfather would work for six months, then go back to Italy via ship and buy land. Theyd do the work no one else was doing. My brothers and sisters are lucky that our parents came to this country at a huge hardship to themselves.
Lenarduzzis father was a cheese maker in his native Italy. But when he couldnt find work in that trade he did a lot of odd jobs, to begin with, says Lenarduzzi. They were sponsored by my moms aunt and uncle, and not long after they got here they scraped enough money to put a down payment on a house.
His mother still lives in that house in East Vancouver.
Now, Lenarduzzi is being honoured for his work with the Vancouver Whitecaps, a team he played with in their first season in 1974. When we talked for this interview, the Eurocup was underway, much to the delight of local soccer fans, especially those supporting the Italian team.
What the Whitecaps have tried to do, whether people support AC Milan or whomever, is give them an opportunity to get the same feel from the sport live as opposed to following your team from a distance, says Lenarduzzi.
Another sport beloved by many Italians, bocce ball, is also an important piece of Vancouvers cultural mosaic. Lenarduzzi may not play much soccer himself anymore, but hes still a force to be reckoned with on the bocce court.
I have a couple of sets at home and a little bocce area thats underneath a grapevine that my father planted when we first moved into our house 30-odd years ago. His dad, now deceased, loved to play bocce, says Lenarduzzi.
But even if youre not a sports fan, theres one thing that makes everyone an honourary Italian, at least until the last drop of Trebbiano is poured: the food.
Vancouver is blessed with an array of top-quality Italian shops, cafes and restaurants most located in the East Side from Bosa Foods to Café Roma to the Poor Italian restaurant.
The last thing Id open here is an Italian restaurant, because its so competitive, says Century Plazas Cocchia.
Naturally, connections form between Italian Vancouverites and local Italian-run businesses. Lenarduzzi feels a bond with Marcello Pizzeria on Commercial Drive; owner Marcello Lombardo played on a soccer team with Lenarduzzis brothers.
The guys [from the team] have stuck with him over the years, says Lenarduzzi. He notes that he has been eating Lombardos dishes since the Italian food magnate was still operating out of his previous restaurant, Lombardos, also on Commercial Drive.
Lenarduzzi also loves Quattro in North Vancouver. The owners, the Corsis, have been in the restaurant business forever, he says. They used to come to the games way back in the 70s. So its relationship-driven, but we do love the food there as well.
Food and espresso, football and bocce may be part of the Italian influence in Vancouver, but more important is the hard work that the parents and grandparents of todays Italian Canadians put into making a better life for their families.
When I look at my parents and their friends, they all came here and struggled to make ends meet, says Lenarduzzi. But in the end, they created a wonderful legacy in British Columbia.
Tickets to the awards ceremony are $125 and are available by calling 778-321-2051.
The 2012 BC Italian Business Excellence Awards
The 2012 BC Italian Business Excellence Award winners:
Business Excellence Award: Tony Luongo Concord National
Young Entrepreneur Award: Carmelina Cupo and Antonio Cupo
Innovation Award: Richard Eppich Advanced Cyclotron Systems Inc.
Italian Hospitality Award: Wendy Lisogar-Cocchia and Sergio Cocchia Crew Management
Family Business Award: Rob De Lazzari Deltec Electric
Media Award: Rino Vultaggio Il Marco Polo
Presidents Award: Bob Lenarduzzi Vancouver Whitecaps FC
