The Feast of the Assumption has a big been a part of James Malatesta’s life – for 95 years. Malatesta, who turned 100 on March 30, is the longest running parishioner of Holy Rosary in Little Italy. He joined at age 5 in 1924 when he moved to Cleveland from Syracuse, N.Y. with his mother, Philomena, a native of Naples, Italy.

They chose to build a home in Little Italy, drawn by its sense of community and tradition. The church was the center of that community, especially around the Feast of the Assumption. The Feast began in 1898, a few years after Holy Rosary parish on Mayfield Road was founded 1892. The current church was dedicated in 1909.