Event to mark 21st anniversary in Youngstown

Staff report

Youngstown

The Brier Hill Italian Fest, which opens Thursday. has this claim to fame — “the longest and continuously running Italian Fest in the city of Youngstown.”

There will be a special tribute to John Maluso at this year’s event. Maluso, a resident of Youngstown for 86 years, will be recognized during a ceremony at 7 p.m. Friday, when he will be presented the Man of the Year Award.

Maluso taught at schools throughout the region for decades. He has served as a member on more than a dozen local committees, including the Brier Hill Festival Committee. Maluso appeared in the locally made movie “Fine Tune,” made by Chris Rutushin of Youngstown.

Also on Friday, there will be a special tribute to the ITAM Memorial Post 12 Veterans Memorial Wall. Fest proceeds will benefit the post.

The Brier Hill Italian Fest is in its 21st year. Most Italian festivals in the area are located in a downtown area or on church grounds, but the Brier Hill Fest is unique because it takes place in a residential neighborhood.

For four days each summer, Brier Hill — a hillside neighborhood on the North Side — is reawakened to its historic past. In its heyday, Brier Hill was a bustling area filled with Italian immigrants and their descendants.

True to its motto, the festival captures “the spirit of the old Italian neighborhood.”

Food vendors will line the hilly brick streets at the corner of Victoria and Calvin, while the pavilion across from the ITAM club is another center of activity.

A morra tournament will begin at 7:30 p.m. Friday on the deck across from the ITAM. The Hot Pepper Contest will start at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, also on the deck, with winners announced at 7:30 p.m. A wine-tasting contest is planned at 4 p.m. next Sunday. Live entertainment is scheduled for all four days.