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Princesses take triple crown honors
The Vindicator ( Youngstown)
Photo
From left, sisters Brianna, 10, Juliana, 5, and Arianna DiFabio, 8, of Poland have won the Miss Italian Princess pageant at the Mount Carmel Fest — in 2009, 2010 and this year. Photo by: MADELYN P. HASTINGS | THE VINDICATOR.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church Italian Festival
By JoAnn Jones
YOUNGSTOWN
Three sisters with identical clothing. Three sisters with beautiful smiles. Three sisters who love to dance and sing. And three sisters with the title of Little Princess.
The sisters — Brianna, 10; Arianna, 8; and Julianna, 5, the daughters of Bob and Shelly DiFabio of Poland — are self-confident, talented, and enthusiastic young ladies who have each been named the Little Princess at the Italian Festival of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church for three of the past five years.
“My husband, Bob’s, family has been lifetime members of the church,” Shelly DiFabio said. “But now there are no more DiFabio girls [for the contest]. I think Mount Carmel people are probably happy we’re done.”
Brianna was the first of the sisters to win the title in 2009 when she was just six. The contest is open to girls in preschool up to age 10 with a corresponding Little Prince contest for boys.
That year both Brianna and her younger sister Arianna competed against one another.
“The first year Jim Loboy of [WYTV] Channel 33 asked me a bunch of questions,” Brianna said. “He asked me who I thought would win. I said Ari would.”
“I was sort of nervous,” Brianna continued. “We both sing and she’s a really good singer. And I didn’t want to hurt her feelings when I won.”
Loboy, who serves as master of ceremonies each year, asks the children easy questions such as what their favorite colors and favorites foods are, but Brianna said he always asks a contestant — male or female — who the prettiest contestant is or who will win.
“When they announced my name,” Brianna said, “I was speechless. It was one of the best things that ever happened to me.”
“The contest helped me not to be afraid to get up in front of people,” she said. “It’s given me the confidence that I can do anything in front of people — sing, dance. I love public speaking.”
The next year, as the reigning princess, she got to hand out gifts and participation trophies. And to top it off, she had the opportunity to crown her sister Arianna as the Little Princess 2010.
Arianna, the singer of the family, sang “We’re the Best Italian Family” to the infamous Barney song and was dressed in an outfit of green, white, and red that Shelly had made.
“When they announced my name,” Arianna said, “I just froze. Then Bri crowned me.”
Brianna, who had been wearing her crown as the reigning princess, said she had to take her crown off.
“I took it off because people were congratulating me instead of Ari,” she said. “It was her turn.”
Julianna, who competed last year and was first runner-up, won the title July 25.
“I was in the contest because my sisters did it,” said the 5-year-old. “I love it when I copy my sisters.”
“They did give me advice to win,” Julianna added. “They told me to smile, just talk, and have fun.”
Shelly also made her outfit by tie-dying a shirt and pants green and adding rhinestones to it. A large flower on the shirt completed the outfit.
Competing in pageants and sharing the last parts of their first names are not the only things the girls have in common.
“We buy three of every toy, three of every outfit, and usually three of every pair of shoes,” Shelly said. “All four of us have the same pair of shoes and a couple of outfits.”
“It makes life so simple,” she added, “with no fighting over clothes.”
Shelly admitted she was stressing out over a family wedding the girls were in Sept. 7. Brianna was a junior bridesmaid, Arianna was reading a petition, and Julianna was the flower girl.
“It was the first time they were in public not wearing the same outfit,” she said, “although they did wear the same outfit for the rehearsal. Their sizes are close, so it’s easy to buy the same outfits.”
As the oldest, Brianna has found that she loves cheering for the Poland Little Bulldogs, and, of course, her sisters share that love.
“I love cheerleading, gymnastics, and dance,” she said. “I also like to roller skate sing, and swim.”
Arianna also cheers for the Little Bulldogs although she is on a different squad because of age differences. Julianna is too young to cheer on a squad, but she has learned the cheers just the same.
“I love to practice my back handspring and jump on the trampoline,” Arianna said. “We have a pool and a trampoline in the back yard.”
“They make videos all the time and dance and sing,” Shelly said.
Shelly laughed as she recalled a day when the girls were in a store at Easton in Columbus.
“They actually did a dance and cheer in Brookstone, right there in the store,” she said. “They also did them at Rhiel Supply and at the news tents at the Canfield Fair.”
The DiFabio girls have two close friends in the neighborhood with whom they share the ends of their first names, too: Ellianna Volpini and Gianna Vagnarelli. These girls have become more than friends, Shelly said.
“It’s like they’re sisters,” Shelly said. “The girls feel closer than friends. Recently we had a sleepover that we called ‘Sillyanna’ and my mother was moving and had an empty house, so that’s where we had it. It was perfect because the girls could run and do flips.”
“These friends encouraged me to compete in the Poland Idol on the Fourth of July,” Brianna said. “I sang the ‘Pitch Perfect Cup Song’ a cappella and took second place.”
Brianna has also helped special-needs children at a school in Aurora.
“She’s very dedicated to that,” said her mother. “In July she would get up by 5 a.m. and leave by 6:15 with a therapist who works there, too.”
In addition, the sisters dog-sit for a neighbor (and get paid, they said) while they also share eight pets: three hermit crabs, three cats, a hamster, and a fish.
When school started a few weeks ago, Julianna entered kindergarten at Poland Union, where Arianna is in third grade.
“I want to have fun, do homework, and make new friends,” Julianna said. “But Mommy’s been crying.”
Shelly, who serves as her daughters’ Girl Scout leader and works Wednesdays providing child care for Community Bible Study, said Julianna would go everywhere with her when the others were in school.
“When she was a baby, she would go with me,” she said, “and when she was older, she would help with the children at Community Bible Study.
“I’m with my kids 24 hours a day during the summer,” Shelly said. “During the school year I volunteer at school, head committees, read for classes. Their dad is a construction worker who works locally and he’s very busy. Sometimes in the summer he works seven days a week. But he’s very proud of them.”
“God gave me girls for a reason,” she continued. “I want them to have good self-esteem. They’re very independent. They do things for themselves and they help one another.”
“It’s important for them to be well-rounded and have as many experiences as possible,” Shelly said. “It’s important to learn to be part of a group and be able to get along.”