At 95, retired master seamstress Maria Pulsone of Flushing says she’s nothing special, although there is a life-size statue of her in Italian American Museum. Titled “Good Night, Maria,” it is one of three new exhibits at the museum. But for decades, its whereabouts were a mystery, and some family members forget it ever existed.
The 80th Annual Columbus Day Parade took place on Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue on Monday, Oct. 14, and the Diocese of Brooklyn put its stamp on the event in a big way.
This is Bishop Emeritus Nicholas DiMarzio’s full homily from the Columbus Day Mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Manhattan on October 10, 2022.
An estimated 35,000 participants marched past St. Patrick’s Cathedral where many stopped to be greeted and have their pictures taken with Cardinal Timothy Dolan and Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio, including actor Chazz Palminteri, Police Commissioner Dermot Shea, and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul.
After last year’s virtual Columbus Day observance, this year’s event returned as an in-person celebration of faith and Italian-American heritage in New York City. Columbus Day 2021 began with a bilingual Mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral on Monday morning.
With chants of “Keep Columbus Day,” dozens of activists gathered at a Columbus Circle rally on May 12 to denounce the city Department of Education’s (DOE) decision to remove Columbus Day from the school calendar.
In a move that caused heads to spin, the New York City Department of Education (DOE) eliminated Columbus Day from its list of official school holidays, replaced it with Indigenous People’s Day, and then abruptly changed course again when faced with a backlash.
The New York State-funded Mother Cabrini statue, commemorated in St. Frances Xavier’s honor, will be unveiled in Battery Park on Oct. 12.
COVID-19 is forcing everyone to change their Columbus Day plans. The Columbus Citizens Foundation recently announced that the march will not be held in person but will be a virtual event.
After marching in the Columbus Day Parade on Oct. 14, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced that New York state will build a statue of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini.
