Italain American culture was on full display in Oyster Bay last week, thanks to the town’s Italian American Citizens’ Club’s 14th annual St. Rocco’s Festival.
The multi-evening event brought thousands of attendees ranging from toddlers to seniors. Visitors could play games, compete in raffles, go on rides, eat food and listen to live rock ‘n’ roll music. There was even a section where adults could buy cigars and alcohol. Tables were set up for adults to converse and drink in this area.
The festival ran from July 10 to 13 at Fireman’s Field in Oyster Bay.
Club officers of the IACC, including President Kenneth Minicozzi and Vice President Greg Santi, were in attendance.
“This is kind of our way of a fundraiser, but at the same time, it’s kind of like a party that we throw, thanking the community for their help throughout the year. So it’s kind of got like a double edge to it,” said Minicozzi.
The Italian American Citizens’ Club of Oyster Bay is a social club that promotes Italian culture, provides community service, and hosts charity and fundraising events such as St. Rocco’s Festival. It has existed since 1906 and has over 300 members. The original members met with then-President Theodore Roosevelt at Sagamore Hill to ask for his permission to start the organization.
According to Minicozzi, St. Rocco’s Festival is usually their biggest fundraiser of the year, with nearly 100 different sponsors who “pitch in each year and try to help in any way they can to allow us to continue our mission.”
He noted that these organizations allow the club to continue its mission.
“Without their help and their funds and their donations for our fundraising events, we wouldn’t be able to continue our mission,” Minicozzi said.
The dozen or so rides included a Ferris wheel, a drop tower known as Super Shot and a pendulum ride called Super Round-Up. Attendees needed to purchase and wear a wristband to ride them.
One of the festival’s biggest spectacles was a nearly 10-minute-long fireworks show on Friday night.
“We hold this fireworks display for a couple of different reasons,” Minicozzi said. “No. 1, to continue the celebration of one of the greatest nations in the world, our United States. This is right after Independence Day, so it fits in very well.
“Secondly, we do it to celebrate the community and all our sponsors and all our charitable organizations that we support,” Minicozzi continued. “We do it so they can bring their families down, and they put their chairs out on the lawn. It’s just the time to kind of sit back and not only reflect on independence, but also reflect on the work that the Italian American Citizens Club does for its own community.”
He said that Oyster Bay Supervisor Joseph Saladino was in attendance Friday night.
The Town of Oyster Bay helped the club with festival preparations and supported its successful run.
