Tons of Fun at First Ever 'La Festa Italia'

All weekend long, Community Park in Cedar Grove was transformed with the smell of frying zeppoles and the sounds of kids screaming for joy on rides during Cedar Grove UNICO's first ever La Festa Italia.

The weekend-long festival was sponsored by Cedar Grove UNICO, and truly had something for everybody.

Of course, no Italian festival would be complete without a dizzying variety of mouth watering food. Visitors could eat their fill on Italian favorites, including sausage and peppers and meatball sandwiches. Plenty of zeppoles and cannolis were available for anyone who had actually made room for dessert. Kids and teenagers enjoyed a number of rides, including a ferris wheel and spinning scatter rides. Volunteers ran the games of chance and kept people coming back for more.

A lot of work went into making this event happen, but the people who put it all together have already said they want to make it a yearly tradition.

"We are looking forward to making this an annual event and to provide an Italian cultural experience for the wonderful community of Cedar Grove" said Rich McAllister, who chaired UNICO's publicity effort for the festival.

Unico National is the largest Italian American Service organization in the United States. Besides promoting Italian culture, Unico has awarded thousands of scholarships, raised funds for cancer research, helps send children to camp and donates funds to local charities. For more information visit cgunico.org.