Much has been written of the Italian male immigrant – of his intrepid desires and accomplishments. But what of the tenacious Italian woman who came to America in search of success – her numbers are also strong and many. Between 1901 and 1910, nearly nine million immigrants came to the United States. Large ratios of these immigrants were young Italian women, who bravely left their small towns and villages to follow the shadows of their ancestors.

In 1910, both my Italian grandmothers were among those dauntless young women who left their little towns and villages to come to America. It took a special kind of bravery for a young woman to leave her home and family and make that voyage of a lifetime. It’s that same unifying, inherited, spirit that lives within every Italian-American woman – past, present and future.