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At the annual Mother\/Daughter Holiday Lunch in Corrado’s Cucina, are from the left, server, Brenda, Janice Scibilia, Frankie, co-owner of the restaurant, and Norine Gardiner. (Courtesy\/Norine Gardiner)Staten Island Advance<\/p>\nEditor\u2019s note: Welcome to Inside Out, our weekly roundup of stories about Staten Islanders making waves, being seen, supporting our community and just making our borough a special place to live. Have a story for Inside Out? Email Carol Ann Benanti at benanti@siadvance.com.<\/p>\n
At the annual Mother\/Daughter Holiday Lunch in Corrado’s Cucina, are from the left, server, Brenda, Janice Scibilia, Frankie, co-owner of the restaurant, and Norine Gardiner. (Courtesy\/Norine Gardiner)Staten Island Advance<\/p>\n
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. \u2014 It\u2019s the merriest, most wonderful time of the year \u2014 when Christmas, Hanukkah and Kawanzaa descend upon us and holiday hustle and bustle can be seen from every corner of the globe.<\/p>\n
The calendar has been filled with parties, traditional Yuletide gatherings and sparkly holiday-themed productions have become a welcomed part of the season to be jolly.<\/p>\n
Right here on Staten Island some 28 years ago, a heartwarming story of a Mother-Daughter Christmas Brunch tradition was born \u2014 the brainstorm of a few close friends.<\/p>\n
It grew in size from a casual get together into a highly anticipated annual event for dozens of local women celebrating sisterhood, community and Christmas cheer.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s been a holiday tradition that began back in 1998 when a small group of Staten Island moms and their daughters gathered for a casual Christmas brunch.<\/p>\n
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A photo of the entire Mother\/Daughter group who meet each year.\u00a0 (Courtesy\/Norine Gardiner)Staten Island Advance<\/p>\n
With the passing of time, its popularity increased and more moms and daughters climbed on board and joined in the merrymaking.<\/p>\n
And to this day revelers have been happily reprising the custom that\u2019s been growing stronger ever since.<\/p>\n
THE MOM AND DAUGHTER LUNCHEON<\/p>\n
The \u201creally big event\u201d features plenty of glittery gifts, games of chance, fun photos \u2014 past and present \u2014 and lots of love and laughter. <\/p>\n
It\u2019s no secret that a lot of hard work and diligence goes into the party planning and record keeping for the mixer that overflows with camaraderie, community spirit and lots of Christmas cheer, says Norine Gardiner, one of the group\u2019s co-founders.<\/p>\n
And inasmuch as the luncheon is held in various venues, for the past three years it\u2019s been staged in Corrado\u2019s Cucina in Greenridge.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur lunches used to be held at different locations on Staten Island each year, but Corrado\u2019s Cucina on Arthur Kill Road did such an amazing job when we first went there in 2023, the year it opened, that the group unanimously agreed to have it there again in 2024 and then wanted a three-peat this year!,\u201d Gardiner said.<\/p>\n
\u201cCo-owner Frankie and server Brenda are so accommodating \u2014 they truly make you feel like family! It continues to be a wonderful tradition of kicking off the holidays with mothers, daughters and friends who grew up on Staten Island and have known each other for decades.”<\/p>\n
In addition, moms and daughters either live or are originally from Staten Island. Gardiner added that since Corrado\u2019s Cucina is conveniently located at the intersection of Arthur Kill Road and Richmond Avenue, it\u2019s the perfect venue.<\/p>\n
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From the left, co-hosts, Janice Scibilia and Norine Gardiner with an elf juggler on stilts. (Courtesy\/Nancy Scafa)Staten Island Advance<\/p>\n
Corrado\u2019s has even taken it up a notch this year by decorating every inch of the dining spot and hosting visits from Santa, the Grinch and an elf juggler on stilts each Sunday \u2014 making it a whimsical wonderland, she continues.<\/p>\n
And since the Advance has covered the Mother\/Daughter Christmas Lunch since 2008, laminated print outs of cherished holiday luncheons past are displayed each year \u2014 evoking smiles and laughter.<\/p>\n
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An array of Advance features were on display at the annual Holiday Luncheon. (Courtesy\/Norine Gardiner)Staten Island Advance<\/p>\n
HIGHLIGHTS FROM THIS YEAR\u2019S LUNCHEON<\/p>\n
Four new guests have climbed on board: Ida Perri, Camille Manfredonia and her mom Sarala Patel with her daughter Eshita.<\/p>\n
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From the left, Laura Troiano, Julia Troiano, Shivani Troiano, Eshita Patel, Sarala Patel and Theresa Troiano. (Courtesy\/Norine Gardiner)Staten Island Advance<\/p>\n
Shivani Troiano, Sarala\u2019s oldest daughter, kicked off the luncheon with a welcoming toast that included introducing her mom and younger sister. <\/p>\n
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Seven moms over 80 years-old were in attendance (clockwise from top left): Ida Perri with Santa, long-time friends Grace Guagliardo, Carol Greco and Lucille Wersching, sisters Sally Silvestri and Norine Ropas and Rita Wright, who are 91 and 90, respectively.\u00a0 (Courtesy\/Norine Gardiner)Staten Island Advance<\/p>\n
Seven moms were in attendance who are over 80 years-young.<\/p>\n
\u201cMerry Milestones\u201d included two participants who were recognized for their mother\/daughter anniversary: Josephine Scheurer hit 25 years and Susan Carney celebrated 20 years. <\/p>\n
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From the left, Josephine Scheurer (25-year Mother\/Daughter anniversary) and Susan Carney (20-year Mother\/Daughter anniversary), who’s holding a spread sheet of the event. (Courtesy\/Norine Gardiner)Staten Island Advance<\/p>\n
For being a SOUP-er daughter, Scheurer received an engraved soup spoon with a can of chicken soup since \u201cThe Mother\/Daughter Christmas Lunch\u201d translates into \u201dChicken Soup for the Holiday Soul.\u201d <\/p>\n
Susan Carney was presented with a $20 Visa gift card personalized with the group photo from the 20th Mother\/Daughter Christmas Lunch in 2017.<\/p>\n
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Two daughters born one month after the 2024 Mother\/Daughter Lunch. (Courtesy\/Norine Gardiner)Staten Island Advance<\/p>\n
\u201cOne month after last year\u2019s event, two daughters who were featured in the Advance brought two more daughters into the world: Frankie Malone (mom Marissa Malone and grandma Theresa Pommerenk) and Cecilia Morisano (mom Jamie Morisano and Lolli Lisa Morisano) \u2014 who were all pictured from last year and at the event,\u201d Gardiner noted.<\/p>\n
The \u201cflurry of festivities\u201d included handcrafted raffle prizes created by Lucille Wersching (co-host and mom of Janice).<\/p>\n
Grab bag gifts that were exchanged \u2014 and holiday-themed games played for a chance to win even more prizes. <\/p>\n
MORE ON THE ORIGINS OF THE LUNCHEON<\/p>\n
The Mother\/Daughter Luncheon is organized each year by childhood friends and co-hosts, the above-mentioned, Norine Gardiner and Janice Scibilia who became friends in Barnes Intermediate School (I.S. 24) while they were planning a surprise birthday party for another friend.<\/p>\n
The highly anticipated event was born out of love and friendship which continues to flourish each year, Gardiner goes on to explain.<\/p>\n
After Janice married Joe in October of 1998, they were looking for an excuse to go back to her wedding venue at holiday time. So, two months later the girls in the bridal party took their moms to brunch. <\/p>\n
The day turned out to be so much fun, they decided to transform it into an annual event \u2014 but at different locations on Staten Island.<\/p>\n
In time, more and more friends and their moms climbed on board the merry little band and through the years some daughters have become moms, which promoted their moms to grand moms.<\/p>\n
Members of the happy little group have grown and now everyone gets to catch up with one another while sharing in the true meaning of the holiday season.<\/p>\n
And they decided to have it be a traditional holiday event.<\/p>\n
Although some guests have moved away, everyone reunites on the first Sunday in December to share in the merry Mother\/Daughter commemorative that kicks off the holiday season.<\/p>\n
To this day revelers have been happily reprising the custom that\u2019s been growing stronger ever since.<\/p>\n
CELEBRATIONS. DEC. 28 TO JAN. 3<\/p>\n
DEC. 28<\/p>\n
Sunday is birthday time for Andy Andersen, Erik Lorentzen, who turns 53, Noelle Sarno, Kevin Patrick Tobuck, and twins Marie Cataldo and Elizabeth McDermott.<\/p>\n
DEC. 29<\/p>\n
Happy birthday on Monday to Maria Bilotti, Thomas Lewon, Erin Greenwaldt, Anthony Boscaino who turns 55, George Bowden, John Occhiuto, and twins Joseph and Rosario Tramontano.<\/p>\n
DEC. 30<\/p>\n
Birthday greetings on Tuesday to Pat Hart, Samantha Moses, Angelo Dachille, Leonard Kinnear and to twins Michael and Natalie Bradway.<\/p>\n
DEC. 31<\/p>\n
Happy New Year\u2019s Eve birthday on Wednesday to Bob Golterman, Kayla Eve Keane, Tara Picone, Camille Tota and Rosemary Wozencroft.<\/p>\n
Happy New Year\u2019s Eve wedding anniversary to Diane and Michael DelPriore who celebrate their 20th.<\/p>\n
JAN. 1<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a New Year\u2019s Day birthday on Thursday for Sheila Schneider, Michael D\u2019Antuono, the first New Year\u2019s Day baby of 1975, Larry Liedy, Robert Ryan, Sean Nola, Fred Black, Jillian Rose Pastore, Barbara Rothschild, Kelly Lang Parsons, Cameron Shaikh and Richard Hoffman.<\/p>\n
JAN. 2<\/p>\n
Birthday greetings on Friday to Kim Flannagan, Tony Palumbo, Alan Johnsen, Nikki Schnell, Milton Eng, Nikki Burns Marie Schiavone and her grandson John Nicholas Schiavone, Jennifer Jannazzo, Nicole Bryne, Joseph Maligno and twins Glen and Gail Smith.<\/p>\n
JAN. 3<\/p>\n
Celebrating birthdays on Saturday are Grace Dwyer, Scott Bacci, Jeffrey Horton and Monica Kobayashi. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Editor\u2019s note: Welcome to Inside Out, our weekly roundup of stories about Staten Islanders making waves, being seen,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":82868,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[9,24,63,134,136,135],"class_list":{"0":"post-82867","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-staten-island","8":"tag-new-york","9":"tag-new-york-city","10":"tag-nyc","11":"tag-staten-island","12":"tag-staten-island-headlines","13":"tag-staten-island-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82867","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=82867"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82867\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/82868"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=82867"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=82867"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=82867"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}