About This Website
We are a group of individuals passionate about Torricella Peligna, the small town in Abruzzo that is home to our cultural and ethnic heritage. Torricellani are strewn here and there across the globe, yet we remain united in our common background. Through this website, we provide a medium that allows Torricellani to connect with each other and to share not only facts and information, but also memories, images and emotions.
How we got started
This project owes special credit to Pierangela Badia and the Abruzzo World Club. Through their website, Abruzzo2000.com, Al (Albert) Porreca of New Jersey, Dan (Donato) Aspromonte of California and Barry Miller (Di Valerio / Di Pietrantonio) of Georgia met.
In May of 2003 they gathered forces to begin creating the website, www.TorricellaPeligna.com, which was launched in August 2003. Shortly afterwards, Barry branched out to create a website dedicated to Fallascoso, www.Fallascoso.com, which was once a town on its own, but is now part of Torricella Peligna.
Soon others joined the project, including Angela Di Berardino (California), the late Peppinuccio Cionna/Joe Cionni (Torricella and Ohio), Antonio Piccoli (Torricella and Rome), Janet Di Pastena (Utah), Mirella Palizzi (Torricella and Texas), the late Marion Apley Porreca (U.K.), Rob Piccone (Washington D.C. and New York), Francine Piccoli Ransdell (California), Massimo Ficca (Torricella and Australia), Marziale Di Marino (Torricella), Joe Persichetti (Colorado), Eric Umile (Pennsylvania), Pierluigi Marsigli (Pisa, Torricella and Brazil), Joseph Bevins (Minnesota), Ada Ficca (Torricella Peligna), Carlo Liberati (Rome)
In 2023 a new website was commissioned by Dan Aspromonte to two Irish Web Designers Conor & Carys Ludlow, who have lived in Torricella since early 2022. They run the Marketing Company called Fás X Fís, pronounced “/Fos By Feece/”, meaning Growth by Vision in Irish. You can check out their website here.
Our website continues to grow rapidly. We encourage all of you to contribute to this project by submitting anecdotes, biographies, family trees, photographs, recipes, etc. Together we are creating a website of which the community of Torricella and the Torricellani the world over can be proud.
The village awards a prize to two emigrants
-Walter Teti.
Torricella Peligna: The epilogue of the first edition of “The Week of Torricellans in the World” was an awards ceremony by Mayor Tiziano Teti to two emigrants who distinguished themselves by promoting the culture of the village together with knowledge about the middle Sangro Aventino’s great potential.
The prize winners are Albert Porreca and Dan Aspromonte who live respectively in New Jersey and California. Their merit was that a few years ago they created the website www.torricellapeligna.com which has enabled emigrants to meet each other within a sort of virtual community which unites them ever more closely: firstly with a forum group on “Yahoo” created by Edoardo Gentile and then when “The Week of Torricellans” was set up. This has brought many emigrants back to the village. In fact, you can hear many different languages being spoken in this small mountain center in these days by the emigrants who have returned from the Americas and from Northern Europe.
The first citizen gave the prizewinners a papyrus certificate made by Paola Di Biase, and a silver tower handmade by Pasquale Imbastaro. The Mayor, The Deputy Mayor Piero Ottobrini, and the Culture Assessor Carmine Ficca, spoke of their desire to make the award a yearly institution. Others who contributed to the work include Marion Porreca, Angela Di Berardino, and Antonio Piccoli, who for years have maintained contacts with Torricellans abroad, and they update the site with news.
In the photo from left to right: Vice Mayor Piero Ottobrini, Mayor Tiziano Teti, Councilmember Carmine Ficca in charge of cultural affairs, Albert Porreca, one of the two award recipients, and Antonio Piccoli. Dan Aspromonte, the other recipient, was detained in California and was unable to attend the award ceremony. During the event the Mayor telephoned Dan to thank him personally. Due to the time difference, he was unable to reach him, but he left him a message of thanks. Dan subsequently responded with a letter to the citizens of the town.
-Translation courtesy of Dr. Marion Apley Porreca
Award For The Website TorricellaPeligna.com
