|
by Adriana Albi Davies, Ph.D.
From reading the various family stories, it is evident
that, in spite of the hardships, the close-knit families
enjoyed life. The fraternal societies or Loggias were not only
a means of providing a safety-net to miners whose interests
were not well represented by the companies but they were also
social organizations. Dinners, dances, selection of a
princess, were the usual activities that were done in groups
when people gathered to socialize. A quintessential Italian
activity, wine making, was adapted to meet southern Alberta
circumstances. Anne (Ermacora) Van Vreumingen notes that her
Father made wine from chokecherries and had the children
trample the berries in a barrel with their bare feet, which
remained pink for days.
Anne further notes:
Our Coalhurst days were filled with fun and with such a
large family there were always many friends coming and going.
We played ball and other games. We had Community sports and
picnics and we were all very active. Behind our house in Wigan,
we had an old slough where we swam in the summertime, it was
knee high with mud, pollywogs, broken bottles and tin cans. In
the winter we skated on it and our house was then used to
change skates, getting warm and to lend skates to the ones
that had none.1
Their Father took them on sleigh-rides but these
pleasurable activities were also interludes in the serious
business of getting a living. Her brother Louis came to Canada
at the age of 11, had three years of schooling in Coalhurst
and then went to work in the mines.
A number of the Italian Coalhurst families intermarried
with other families and farming and the activities associated
with it became a part of their lifeways. The family would farm
the land and fathers and brothers would work in the mines in
the winter. This gave them a revenue source but also the means
to grow much of the food that they needed. The possibility of
losing work made their financial well-being precarious. But
this seemed to nurture a generosity of spirit and Anne gives a
wonderful example. She writes:
Father had a dray and two horses "Mabel" and "Browny". He
would go to Coalhurst to try and sell some vegetables and
eggs, so we could buy other staples. The Community Miners Hall
was one of his favorite spots and he would stop for a few
beers and a visit with his friends. Often he would come home
empty handed and all the produce gone. He would often give it
away to people that were less fortunate than us. With the mine
closed all summer and no work, people would have no money and
would promise father that they would pay sometime later. Once
in awhile dad would come home with sugar, coffee and other
things. Mother would ask where he got the money and he would
tell us that some lady had stopped him in the street and paid
him the money she promised to pay him years ago. He would give
to other people sometimes not even knowing their names. He was
a very generous man and we loved him dearly.2
Unlike, for example, the Crowsnest communities and even
Nordegg and the Coal Branch where some activities broke down
along ethnic lines, in Coalhurst, the various ethnocultural
groups seemed to inter-relate more based on the accounts in
Our Treasured Heritage.
She speaks of school ballgames, summer picnics and Christmas
concerts as well as sports days with races, baseball and high
jumping. Their parents came to watch. While the mine explosion
forced most to leave the town, those who contributed to the
community history book all note the hold that the town kept
on them and the regular reunions and efforts made to keep in
touch.
The wave of post-World War II immigration brought a whole
new influx of Italian immigrants to the area. John Mazzuca has
provided me with information about the Italian society in
Lethbridge. It began in the 1950s with the formation of an
Italian Club. They wanted to build a hall but without success.
In 1960, the club was incorporated as the Romulus & Remus
Italian Canadian Club. Again an attempt was made to build a
hall without success. They finally succeeded in 1976 and at
that time the memberships was 400. The founding board
included: John Mazzuca, President; Nick Desimoni, Vice
President; Nick Palazzo, Treasurer; Silvio Mauro, Secretary;
and councilors, Antimo Altieri, Giulio di Rocco, Pete Fiorino,
Joe Mantello, Aldo Meli, Tony Paladino, Fernando Rose, Aldo
Vercilio and Mike Vercilio.
Their activities included the
children's party held in February when La Befana (the good
witch associated with Epiphany) gave children gifts (or coal,
if they were bad). They participated in local Heritage Days
activities in August as well as having dinner dances, picnics,
spaghetti suppers and seasonal events such as the New Grape
Social with a wine tasting content. In the past, they had an
Italian language class and brought Sabatino Roncucci from
Edmonton to start an Italian dancing program. The dancers went
to Expo '86 in Vancouver. The hall is available for bookings
for non-members of the community and its membership stands at
about 460.
Related Link
[back]
[top] |
Heritage Community Foundation Presents
