The Villages Italian Club

Bob Iacopi was a long-time member of The Villages Italian Club, which began with fewer than 100 members in 2000 and has now grown to over 500 members. He became President of the Club in 2006 and served in that role until 2014, when he stepped down to care for his ailing wife. He remained on the Board until his recent passing. Bob’s vision of providing quality, affordable events that celebrated Italian culture helped shape the club into one of The Villages’ most popular and successful organizations.
Continue reading “Bob Iacopi Remembered”

The Italian Club held its 25^th Anniversary Fiesta on Saturday, October 11^th at Cribari. An enormous undertaking, the Italian Club Board worked on this event for over 10 months, pulling everything together beautifully. And of course, we can’t forget our many volunteers — too numerous to name, but absolutely essential to our success!

The three-hour celebration brought together more than 300 members and guests for an afternoon of food, fun, and festivities. Designed as a member appreciation event, it was our way of saying “thank you” for your support over the years. The Cribari Plaza and Center were beautifully transformed with Italian décor, making guests feel as though they’d stepped into a lively festival in Italy.

There was something for everyone –

• Gift bags filled with items celebrating our history – 25th anniversary napkins and coasters, imported Italian candies, and biscotti.
• Music by J.B. Webb, whose Sinatra tribute had people wondering if “Ol’ Blue Eyes” himself had returned.
• A performance in the Auditorium by Bill Likens and friends, where members could sit and relax inside.
• Spencer Grey, our roaming magician, amazed guests with tricks that left everyone asking, “How did he do that?”
• A cooking demonstration by Joe Civello that had everyone’s mouths watering.
• A fortune teller who stayed busy the entire afternoon — perhaps inspiring a few lottery ticket purchases later!
• A photo booth for lasting memories (we can’t wait to post the pictures online).
• Games galore – a cornhole challenge, a golf pitching battle royale, and a “guess the corks in the jar” contest – where the number guessed exactly!
• And, of course, incredible food by Chef John: fresh pizza, meatballs, two kinds of pasta, Caesar and Caprese salads, garlic bread, and a tricolor Italian cake — all perfectly paired with wine. No one left hungry!

If you couldn’t join us, stay tuned for our Christmas Party on December 13 and a full slate of events for 2026, to be announced at our January 10 Members Meeting.

Click here to see event photos!

Click anywhere below to sign up!

Continue reading “Italian Club Festa Italiana now OPEN!!!”

Click anywhere on the invitation to sign up!

On Thursday, May 1st, we had a shared event with the Chinese Club. Terry Holmquist and Garry Gray worked with the Chinese Club to have a shared tasting of pasta and noodles. We learned about the similarities and differences, and had a wonderful taste of four different recipes.

You can see the shared presentation here, we hope to have more joint events in the future! Click the image below to see photos from the event!

We are offering our Italian Club shirts for order once again! The responses to our survey were great! These are high quality shirts, that will last many years without shrinking or fading. Pickleball and Bocce have used these for over ten years, and they still look great!

We are not currently taking orders, but we do have some shirts available in many sizes for both women and men. These are available at a discounted price. Contact Anahid at 732-742-4874 or anahid.villages@gmail.com for availability.

 

If you were lucky enough to attend our Membership Meeting on January 11th, you heard Kathy Winkleman speak about shopping in Italy and where to find great deals here in California. This link will take you to her complete resources.

Sue Bacigalupi also revealed our 2025 Event Calendar. The highlight is the Club’s 25th Anniversary Festa, to be held on October 11th at the Cribari Center. This event is open to 500 members, so be prepared for a blow-out event! We are looking for volunteers, as we need members to participate to make it a success. We’ll be sending out information so you can sign up if you weren’t able to at the Membership meeting.

 

2024 Valentine’s Day Party
Buon San Valentino

What a setting for a Valentine’s Day Party!  Thanks to Penny Barcellos and Noel Lancot and their team of hard working volunteers, the Clubhouse Banquet room was transformed into a lovely setting.  Did you notice the napkins were even folded into a heart shape?  And who cut out all those tiny hearts and hung them from the centerpiece foliage – what a pretty table it made!   After a lovely dinner, we were serenaded by Sargon on his guitar and as you can see members had a great time dancing.

Click on either photo to go to the complete Smugmug file of photos of the event; thanks to Pi Silverstein for his great  work as the event photographer.