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The Festa Italiana Committee was established to create an exhibit to complement the Da Vinci Exhibit which visited British Columbia and raised interest in the heritage of Italian-Canadians. Mary Giuliano, a journalist with the Fernie Free Press and member of the Italian community of Fernie was involved in the creation of the exhibit. The idea for the "Elk Valley Italian Oral History Project" was born during the first meeting of the Festa Italiana Committee. At that time, it was decided that grants should be sought for an oral history project. The proposal was submitted to the BC Heritage Trust in December, 1977 and was awarded in March, 1988.

Photo Gallery text and images are drawn from the Elk Valley Italian Oral History Project: Voices of the Elk Valley (Unpublished: Fernie and District Historical Society, 1998-99). The Heritage Community Foundation and the Year of the Coal Miner Consortium would like to thank the Fernie and District Historical Society for permission to use this material.