WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES MARCH 29, 2018 31
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Activists honored at Triangle Factory memorial ceremony
BY RYAN KELLEY
RKELLEY@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM
TWITTER @R_KELLEY6
On the 107th anniversary of the
Triangle Shirtwaist Factory
fire, family members of the
victims honored their legacy during
a March 25 ceremony in the CNL Center
at Christ the King High School in
Middle Village.
The annual gathering — hosted by
former state Senator Serphin R. Maltese,
now chairman of the Christ the
King Board of Trustees and president
of the Triangle Fire Memorial Association
(TFMA) — honors the 146 victims
of the March 25, 1911, fi re that led to
signifi cant changes in American labor
laws. Most of the victims were Jewish
Italian immigrants who were treated
poorly, worked long hours in unsafe
conditions and were locked inside the
factory during their shift s.
Maltese’s grandmother Caterina Maltese,
38, and his two aunts Rosarea, 14,
and Lucia, 18, were killed in the fi re. Maltese
and his brother, Vincent C. Maltese,
founded the TFMA with the families of
other victims in 1955, and every year
they have connected with more relatives
of victims who appreciate their eff orts
to memorialize the tragedy.
“This year there are more events
going on than in the last 10 years,”
Maltese said. “I think maybe we’re
part of it, but we are accomplishing the
remembering and honoring of the 146.”
The ceremony included musical
performances from the Christ the
King Concert Chorus with musical
director and 2012 honoree Heather
Arzberger, a poetry reading by 2018
honoree Paola Corso and a solo acting
performance by playwright and 2012
honoree LuLu LoLo Pascale.
Constance Del Vecchio Maltese, an
artists and the wife of Serphin, also
unveiled at the event a new painting
of Serphin’s grandfather, Serafino
Maltese. Constance previously memorialized
Caterina, Rosarea and Lucia
Maltese in a painting that hangs inside
the CNL Center.
The 2018 honorees use a variety of
mediums, but they have all dedicated
time to researching and memorializing
the fi re in their own way. Corso,
who descends from an Italian immigrant
family, wrote a book of poems
about the fi re titled “Once I was Told
the Air Was Not For Breathing.”
Professor Edvige Giunta was born
in Sicily and currently teaches English
at New Jersey City University. She
has organized and participated in
commemorations, panel discussions
and lectures about the fi re, and she is
committed to including it in the curriculum
of her courses on immigrant
Members of the Triangle Factory Memorial Association with the 2018 honorees at Christ the King High School
on March 25.
literature, women writers and Italian
American literature.
Sondra E. McGill, 23, is the granddaughter
of Serphin and Constance
and will carry on the family’s legacy
by serving as the curator of the TFMA.
She said that as a victim’s family member,
she recognizes the importance of
her connection to the fi re.
“I think in a tragedy like this, it’s
important to see the victims as people
and not just see it as an abstract
concept,” McGill said. “And I think
the performances today were a great
example of that.”
John M. Perricone, the vice chairman
of the TFMA, was also recognized
as an honoree. The Ridgewood native
is a former president of the 104th
Precinct Community Council, former
board member of the Citizens for a Better
Ridgewood civic association and
currently serves on the staff of Queens
Borough President Melinda Katz.
Two more academics honored
were Dr. Adrienne Andi Sosin and
Dr. Daniel Levinson Wilk, who both
serve the Remember the Triangle
Fire Coalition. Sosin has contributed
to several research publications and
Photos by Ryan Kelley/The Ridgewood Times
has taught at Adelphi University, the
City College of New York and Pace University.
Levinson Wilk writes about
the modern service sector in 19th- and
20th-century U.S. history, and his
moving acceptance speech connected
this historic fi re to the modern-day
tragedies still plaguing America.
“I wish that it didn’t take huge disasters
to get our attention,” Levinson
Wilk said, aft er reading the numbers
of people killed in several other mass
tragedies. “I wish we remembered
some of the other smaller things more
oft en.”
St. Matthias students donate
200 bags to the homeless
Students in seventh and eighth
grade at St. Matthias Catholic
Academy partnered with Kevin
Harrison from “Blessing Bag Brigade”
for their Lenten service project to
donate to the homeless community
in Ridgewood and Glendale.
With donated items from the
school community, the students
fi lled 200 bags with snack bars, toothbrushes,
toothpaste, hand sanitizer,
razors, socks, water, bandages, cotton
swabs and other necessary sanitary
items. The students also spoke
with Harrison about his mission and
watched a video about his experiences
giving to the homeless, assisting
him in continuing his ministry of
helping the homeless community.
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