Club News
A Message From Our President
Our Malta Day Celebration:
It is my honor to welcome Honorable Consul General Mr. Louis Vella and
Mrs. Lillian Vella, Fr. Andrew, Michela Pace, who has come from Malta
to entertain us tonight, and, of course, all of you here celebrating with us.
This year there are many milestones that celebrate Malta’s history…the
20th Anniversary of Malta becoming a member of the European Union,
the 50th Anniversary of Malta becoming a Republic and, of course, on
September 21st, the 60th Anniversary of Malta’s Independence. In
addition, the Maltese-American Social Club of SF is celebrating its 95th
Anniversary. We have so much to be proud of!
Malta’s history is a rich one and Malta Day honors many important
events in our history, going back to as early as 1565. In September of
that year, we were able to overtake the Ottoman Turkish Empire. Il-
Vitorja or Victory Day, September 8th, commemorates the end of three
historical sieges: the Great Siege of Malta, in 1565, the Siege of Valletta
in 1800 and the Siege of Malta during World War II.
Malta has welcomed many people to its shores, from dignitaries to
tourists, to those making Malta their new home, and to those returning
home to see their families and beautiful homeland once again. Those who
visit Malta and Gozo seem to leave with the hope of returning.
As we celebrate this evening, we honor the past and look forward to the
future. We come from a long line of exceptional and courageous people
who worked, fought, and dreamed to ensure bright futures for those of us
who followed. We can honor them by preserving and continuing to share
our culture with the generations that have followed.
We come together on Malta Day not only to commemorate the great
accomplishments and triumphs of our country’s history but also to look
forward to our future. We must continue to share our stories, as those
before us did, and we must continue to preserve our culture and language
for our children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. We are all
connected to those beautiful islands in the Mediterranean. By sharing
our stories with one another we honor those who paved the way for us.
As I mentioned earlier, the Club is celebrating it’s 95th Anniversary.
Quite a number of you have been members for many, many years and
have so many stories to share! We will be celebrating this momentous
milestone with a dinner dance at the Club in November.
I want to thank our Masters of Ceremonies, Michael Pace and Charlotte
Micallef, who have done a fabulous job! Prosit!
Very much appreciated are the donations that were received, both
privately and from the organizations in the Maltese Community. Thank
you so much.
Last, but certainly not least, I would also like to take this time to thank
the Malta Day Event Planning Team, which is represented by all of the
organizations in the Maltese Community. Tonight would not have been
possible without them and their countless hours of planning.
Grazzi
ħafna
Thank You,
Mary
Message from the Honorary Consul General of Malta, Louis Vella
Greetings dear friends of the Maltese
American Social Club and the Maltese
Community in California. As I write,
California and especially the Bay Area is
experiencing abnormally and extremely
hot weather. But by the time your
receive this newsletter the heatwave we
are experiencing will most probably be
over. Cooler October weather will start to
set in and the Indian Summer will be
behind us. This is why we love living
here. Neither hot spells nor cold spells
last long.
September in the Maltese Calendar:
Throughout history September has
always been a very important month for
Malta. It is the month when Malta
celebrates many significant events that
shaped its history and culture. One of the
most significant historical events
commemorated in September is known
as the victory of the Great Siege of Malta
in the year 1565. The famous actor Mel
Gibson has shown a lot of interest in
memorializing this historic event into a
TV series. He has visited Malta for this
purpose and we hope this project will
materialize and will be a huge success.
The celebrations on September 8th are
known as IL-VITORJA. Every year the
president of Malta lays a wreath at the
foot of the monument of the great siege
of Malta. This monument is located on
Republic Street in Valletta in front of the
main law courts. The feast of Il-Vitoria,
which is also a religious feast,
commemorates the birth of the Virgin
Mary or as it is commonly known as
Festa ta’ Maria Bambina. This feast is
celebrated primarily in the towns of
Senglea, Naxxar, Mellieha, and XaghraGozo.
That day is also a public holiday.
Being a public holiday, the famous
Regatta takes place in the Grand Harbor
of Malta. The Regatta is a series of
traditional Maltese boat races and a
fierce competition between towns in the
vicinity of the harbor. The competition is
very intense and the drive to win the
Regatta shield is held in the highest
esteem and regard.
In September, we also celebrate the
anniversary of the Independence of
Malta. This year like every year a group
of Maltese-Americans were invited to
City Hall in San Francisco. This is that
one major historic event when Malta was
admitted as a full member of the United
Nations. The flag of Malta was raised
from the balcony of the office of the
Mayor of San Francisco, we played and
sang the Maltese National Anthem, later
sipped on some nice champagne in the
international room, exchanged greetings
and short speeches and mingled with
staff from the office of protocol of the SF
Mayor in a marvelous setting under the
rotunda of one of the most beautiful
buildings in California.
Please see this month's newsletter for more of my message.
Always remember that, it is not what we take but what we give that make us rich.