A founding member of the Sons and Daughters of Italy Lodge 138 was honored Monday by members naming a restored headquarters in Newberry after him. Eugene “Geno” Ciccareli, 97, for which Ufficiale Sons and Daughters of Italy Lodge 138 at 1616 McMinn Ave. is named, smiled at the ribbon cutting, in which a ribbon decked in green, white and red, the colors of Italy, was used.

“It’s good to be here,” Ciccareli said in a soft voice behind his face mask. In June, Ciccareli said he will celebrate his 98th birthday. The lodge was originally founded on June 3, 1903. In the early years of Lodge 138 in Williamsport, Ciccarelli was described as a binder.