CRAIG RUBANO RETURNS TO PERFORM IN ST. LOUIS By Marianne Peri Sack St. Louis native and Broadway star Craig Rubano returns to his hometown to once again perform at the Grandel Theatre.   He will be appearing there from November 10 to November 14. In his concert Change Partners: Life’s a Dance, he will perform the music of some of the last century’s best-known composer partnerships such as Andrew Lloyd Webber and Don Black and Gerry Goffin and Carole King.   Rubano made his Broadway debut as Marius in Les Miserables performing the role 700 times and he was an original cast member of the Tony Award-nominated The Scarlet Pimpernel.  His CD Finishing the Act: Act One Finales from Broadway was the MAC Award-winning Recording of the Year and is currently in its third pressing.  The cabaret performances of Finishing the Act won him a Back Stage Bistro Award and a MAC Award for Outstanding Vocalist of the Year.  His new CD Changing Partners will be released in February 2005 in conjunction with a four- week engagement at Helen’s in New York City.           LA FESTA AT ST. AMBROSE CHURC H By Marianne Peri Sack God must have smiled down on La Festa and answered parishioners’ prayers with an extraordinarily beautiful day Sunday, October 3. The festivities were held in the churchyard, the church basement, the school cafeteria and on Marconi, the street in front of the church. A trip to the Courtyard that was on the corner of Marconi and Wilson was the first stop for many.  They could sit at tables in the warm sun enjoying Italian music by the Italian Community Band of St. Louis while eating calamari, toasted ravioli, fried eggplant or other delicious food.  A traditional pasta dinner was served in the cafeteria. A walk around the booths that lined the churchyard had something for everyone.   Raffles, homemade cookies, bread and jellies, embroidered or cutwork pillowcases, handkerchiefs, t-shirts, cook books, caps, bottle booth, games for the children and a cakewalk.  For those that like to bargain hunt, the church basement was filled with treasures of every kind. It was a good opportunity to meet and chat with old friends, to consume some tasty food, listen to good music and enjoy the beautiful weather.               SICK AND ELDERLY OF THE HILL HOLDS RAVIOLI DINNER By Marianne Peri Sack The Sick and Elderly of the Hill held its annual ravioli and beef dinner on Sunday, September 26, 2004, at St. Ambrose School Cafeteria.  The delicious dinner included salad, dessert, bread and coffee.  The organization’s mission is to provide a home health care program and is operated by its founders, John and Rose-Marie Bianchi.  It is funded by donations and this annual Ravioli dinner fundraiser. The Bianchis have been providing medical supplies and other assistance free of charge to the sick and elderly of the Hill neighborhood for over 30 years.  They take calls at any time of day or night and are assisted by their children and some of the neighborhood youth.  They are currently providing services to 146 people and do this on a monthly budget of $3,000.   FRANK VIVERITO Frank Viverito has a job that every man dreams about.  As President of the St. Louis Sports Commission, he lives and breathes sports each day and he is able to do that in a community heralded as one of America’s best sports cities. He received a B.A. in English at Rutgers University and a M. S. in Sports Management at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.  Positions he held in his field included Director of Marketing and Promotions for AAA Affiliate/New York Mets, Athletic Promotions Director at Old Dominion University, Sports Information/Promotions Director at University of Missouri St. Louis, Marketing & Promotions Manager at Civic Center Corporation and Vice President of Public Relations and Development of the St. Louis Convention & Visitors Commission. In 1995, he became President of the St. Louis Sports Commission.  As the regional non-profit organization that benefits St. Louis through sports, the Sport Commission’s primary role is to bid on, attract, create and manage major sporting events for the community.  Fulfilling its mission, some of the events the organization brought to St. Louis were: 1996 & 1998 Big 12 Football Championship Games; 1998 U. S. Open Track & Field; 1999 Century of St. Louis Sports Celebrations; 1999 & 2001 State Games of America; 2000 & 2004 NCAA Wrestling Championships and 2000 U. S. Gymnastics Championships.  In 2004, the Sports Commission carried the torch commemorating the centennial of the 1904 Olympics in St. Louis.  A very busy and productive year, the Commission helped organize the U. S. Olympic Women’s Marathon Trials, U. S. Olympic Diving Trails, Athens 2004 Olympic Torch Relay and the St. Louis Olympic Centennial Celebration.   Looking ahead to the future the Commission is bringing to St. Louis the NCAA Men’s Final Four and NCAA Wrestling Championships in 2005. Other future projects include 2006 U. S. Figure Skating Championships, 2007 NCAA Frozen Four, 2007 NCAA St. Louis Regional and the 2009 NCAA Women’s Final Four.   Viverito is currently involved in the St. Louis Wheelchair Athletic Association Board, Christmas in St. Louis Board, St. Louis Business Journal – 100 Leaders to Watch in 2001, National Association of Sports Commissions, and is a member of Sports St. Charles, Downtown St. Louis Partnership, RCGA. Under Viverito’s direction, the Commission has worked to develop a regional identity, seeking to enrich the entire metropolitan area and it has made St. Louis a better place to live, visit, work and play.     PETER G. SORTINO Peter Sortino was born in Yonkers, News York, and received a Bachelor of Urban Planning degree from the University of Cincinnati, College of Design, Architecture and Art.  He has attended the Harvard University Kennedy School of Government State and Local Government Program for Senior Executives.   He worked for the Urban Programming Corporation as a community and economic development consultant, corporate secretary and senior planner before holding positions in the Schoemehl and Bosley administrations from 1987 to 1996.   Sortino was deeply involved in many projects related to downtown revitalization, including effort to redevelop the Old Post Office, the development of the Lid over depressed lanes of Interstate 70 and the Washington Avenue streetscape project.  Other projects included involvement in securing funding for park and open space projects, Safe Places For Kids and the Sustainable Neighborhoods Initiative, 2004 Eve, River Splash and very popular Eats Bridge, all signature events of 2004.  He currently chairs the St. Louis Regional Health Commission that is working to expand access to health care in St. Louis City and County.   From November 1996 through July 1999, he served as Vice President of St. Louis 2004, became Executive Vice President in July 1999 and then President of St. Louis 2004 in January 2000. In this capacity, he provided direction and oversight to the staff to ensure the achievement of the organization’s mission to bring people, groups and resources together to make to make the region a better place to live, work and recreate. Sortino’s success as President of St. Louis 2004 is a matter of record.  The recent events that celebrated and commemorated the historical 200th anniversary of the Lewis and Clark Expedition and the 100th anniversary of the Centennial of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition will long be remembered in St. Louis.   UNICO TO CELEBRATE 50 YEARS HERE By Marianne Peri Sack The St. Louis Chapter of UNICO National will celebrate 50 years of service to the community with a banquet on Saturday, October 30, at the Chase Park Plaza Khorassan Room.  The organization ’s annual banquet has served as a fundraiser for various charities including St. Mary’s Special School, Cardinal Glennon Hospital, Make-a-Wish Foundation and Alzheimer Research.  The banquet this year will benefit Multiple Sclerosis and Our Little Haven.   This year’s honorees are Peter G. Sortino, President of St. Louis 2004 and Frank Viverito, President of the St. Louis Sports Commission.  Music will be provided by the Italian Community Band and Joe Tucci.