Jessup resident Stan Burdyn rose before dawn on Saturday filled with excitement about St. Ubaldo Day which would bring a race to his neighborhood and friends to his front porch.
Burdyn is Irish, but on Saint Ubaldo Day, La Festa dei Ceri, he is Italian, along with every other resident of the borough.
Members of the Valley View Marching Band participate in St. Ubaldo festivities on Saturday, May 23, 2026, in Jessup. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
Jessup held its annual St. Ubaldo Day: The Race of the Saints on Saturday, May 23, 2026. The event is held annually on Memorial Day weekend. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
A trumpter plays as Jessup held its annual St. Ubaldo Day: The Race of the Saints on Saturday, May 23, 2026. The event is held annually on Memorial Day weekend. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
Jessup held its annual St. Ubaldo Day: The Race of the Saints on Saturday, May 23, 2026. The event is held annually on Memorial Day weekend. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
Jessup held its annual St. Ubaldo Day: The Race of the Saints on Saturday, May 23, 2026. The event is held annually on Memorial Day weekend. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
Jessup held its annual St. Ubaldo Day: The Race of the Saints on Saturday, May 23, 2026. The event is held annually on Memorial Day weekend. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
Jessup held its annual St. Ubaldo Day: The Race of the Saints on Saturday, May 23, 2026. The event is held annually on Memorial Day weekend. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
Jessup held its annual St. Ubaldo Day: The Race of the Saints on Saturday, May 23, 2026. The event is held annually on Memorial Day weekend. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
Jessup held its annual St. Ubaldo Day: The Race of the Saints on Saturday, May 23, 2026. The event is held annually on Memorial Day weekend. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
Jessup held its annual St. Ubaldo Day: The Race of the Saints on Saturday, May 23, 2026. The event is held annually on Memorial Day weekend. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
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Members of the Valley View Marching Band participate in St. Ubaldo festivities on Saturday, May 23, 2026, in Jessup. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
In addition to the fun and sense of community that fills the community on the day of the event, the history of the celebration, with its roots in Gubbio, Italy, fascinates Burdyn.
St. Ubaldo is credited for single-handedly negotiating with the marauding Emperor Frederick Barbarossa in 1155, successfully preventing the total destruction and sacking of Gubbio.
The Ubaldo Festival, officially known as La Festa dei Ceri, started in Gubbio, in 1160. In 1909, the festival was introduced to the Jessup community by Italian immigrants from Gubbio, and the surrounding cities of Umbria, new to the United States.
Homesick for their families, loved ones and traditions left behind, the immigrants built wooden pillars similar to those used during the festival in Gubbio and ran through the streets of their new and unfamiliar home.
Jessup held its annual St. Ubaldo Day: The Race of the Saints on Saturday, May 23, 2026. The event is held annually on Memorial Day weekend. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
Jessup held its annual St. Ubaldo Day: The Race of the Saints on Saturday, May 23, 2026. The event is held annually on Memorial Day weekend. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
Jessup held its annual St. Ubaldo Day: The Race of the Saints on Saturday, May 23, 2026. The event is held annually on Memorial Day weekend. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
Jessup held its annual St. Ubaldo Day: The Race of the Saints on Saturday, May 23, 2026. The event is held annually on Memorial Day weekend. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
Jessup held its annual St. Ubaldo Day: The Race of the Saints on Saturday, May 23, 2026. The event is held annually on Memorial Day weekend. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
Members of Sant’ Ubaldo carry his ceri up Church Street in Jessup during the St. Ubaldo Day festivities on May 24, 2025. (FILE PHOTO)
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Jessup held its annual St. Ubaldo Day: The Race of the Saints on Saturday, May 23, 2026. The event is held annually on Memorial Day weekend. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO)
The festival, also known as the “running of the saints,” has now become tradition in the area, with roots in both religion and community.
Burdyn anticipated the festivities at his house would move to the back yard and wrap up around 2 a.m., early Sunday morning.
Guests would be treated to Apple-rol Spritz drink, which like everything else about the day springs from Italian tradition, he said.
Melissa Hoffman of Beech Mountain attended the event Saturday for a second year.
She watched as captains of the three teams — St. Ubaldo, St. George and St. Anthony — tossed ornate, water-filled ceramic vases into the air and shattering.
Spectators scrambled for the shards, which are rumored to bring good luck.
Last year, she almost scored a handle of one of the vases before it slipped from her hands. This year, she was content to watch.
Hoffman’s son, Mike Failla, ran the race as part of the St. Ubaldo team and she enjoys watching him and his teammates.
“They put their heart and soul into it,” she said, of the race and the event.
Color, excitement of opening ceremony
Residents and visitors began the day early, undeterred by the rain which was heavy at times.
Blue, black and yellow decorations graced many homes, reflecting each of the three teams.
Following a Mass in honor of St. Ubaldo on the steps of the cultural center, an opening ceremony and procession was held from Old St. Mary’s Church.
Samantha Sorber and Lacie Hannon of the Valley View High School marching band enjoyed participation in St. Ubaldo Day’s processing Saturday, May 23, 2026. (GERI GIBBONS/STAFF PHOTO)
Tony Cacciamani with his son Jack on his shoulders on St. Ubaldo Day, Jessup, on May 23. The event has become a family tradition down to several generations. (GERI GIBBONS/STAFF PHOTO)
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Samantha Sorber and Lacie Hannon of the Valley View High School marching band enjoyed participation in St. Ubaldo Day’s processing Saturday, May 23, 2026. (GERI GIBBONS/STAFF PHOTO)
Lacie Hannon and Samantha Sorber, members of Valley View High School marching band, were delighted for the opportunity to participate in the procession.
Sorber, a junior, said her parents became aware of the special day when they moved to Blakely in about 2010.
Now, the family looks for to the celebration and the sense of community it provides.
Hannon, a freshman, described the event as “filled with energy and passion, very joyful.”
Both the girls said the rain did present a bit of a challenge, necessitating a poncho and special covering for musical instruments.
“But, it was worth it,” Sorber said. “It was fun.”
The highlight of the day and its conclusion, is the Race of the Candles, or “La Corsa dei Ceri,” during which three teams of men carry wooden pillars topped with statues of their patron saints.
Burdyn noted that people from all over the country and from Italy travel to the borough for the celebration.