Tag Archives: Saint Joseph Day

SOME PHOTOS FROM PAST SAINT JOSEPH DAY FEASTS AND PREPARATIONS

So very much missing Saint Joseph Day friends. The following post is from last year, the first St. Joseph Day not shared with friends and family due to the global pandemic. Hopefully, 2021 is the last.

Viva San Giuseppe! March 19, 2020

I think it’s especially difficult for senior friends who look forward each year to ten days with loved ones. I sure missed seeing my “granny” that I’ve come to love while celebrating and honoring St. Joesph at the Groppo home.

Here’s a happy St. Joe story for you – When my husband and I were looking for a home to purchase in Gloucester we were in a terrible bind. We had to be out of rental home suddenly and unexpectedly. I found what seemed like our dream home but then learned It had sold only days earlier. We heard the woman had perhaps purchased the house without the intention to live in it. We approached her and she said yes she would consider selling it to us, but then over the course of the next month, she raised the price three times. The house was wreck, a true fixer-upper, but still it had great bones and I was in love with it.

My friend Claudia gave me a Saint Joseph necklace with the instructions to pray to Saint Joseph and to bury the necklace in the ground of our dream house. Patron Saint of Sicily, of homes, carpenters, artists, and all workers, she said it would bring us luck.

All that time ago, and this beautiful old house has provided us with 24 years of joyous memories, and a place to call home. Happy Saint Joseph Day friends <3

The photos are in no particular order and also include a few snapshots from Ann Margaret Ferrante and Maria Cannova’s beautiful Saint Joseph altars. Click on the first photo to view slide show.

JOE VIRGILIO MAKING SAINT JOSEPH ROLLS

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The Virgilios began making St. Joseph rolls in the early 1950s, for the Feast of Saint Joseph, and today, they make them year round. Back then, there were so many families that celebrated Saint Joseph traditions that even as young kids, Joe and all his cousins had to hurry to the bakery after school to help their grandfather fill the St. Joseph roll orders. Now the bread is made with state of the art equipment but in his grandfather’s day it was all made by hand. Joe smiled thinking about how his grandfather would love today’s mixing and baking machines. I went home with a camera-full of stories and bag full of Joe’s bread, both generous, and much-appreciated gifts.

This video is part of the Saint Joseph Community Film Project and will be available to view for one day. The screen may say, “sorry, because of its privacy setting, this video cannot be played here.” If that is the case just click the “watch on Vimeo” link. Thank you <3

Virgilio’s Saint Joseph rolls are super yummy plain, with a touch of butter, or olive oil, and are even more super delicious made into one of their world-famous sandwiches!