Natale Cusinato was born in Chicago in April 1917, the son of Italian immigrants seeking opportunity in America. However, the promise of the American Dream proved difficult to sustain. Struggling with language, cultural barriers and economic hardship, his family eventually returned to Cittadella, a medieval walled city in the province of Padua, about 40 miles west of Venice.
There, they lived as farmers, modestly but with resilience. Life centered on hard work, close family bonds and tradition. Compared to the sprawling industrial landscape of Chicago, rural Veneto offered familiarity, if not prosperity.
