Man’s spirit lives on with Salzillo Memorial Game Dinner

Posted

They’ll come from all corners of the state – Westerly, Woonsocket and Wickford, just to name a few.

They’ll come from all walks of life – the blue- and white-collar worlds, construction and computer people, business owners, retirees and more.

Although they lead different lives, their mighty mission during an upcoming gathering at the Kelley-Gazzero VFW Post 2812 on Plainfield Street will be, first and foremost, to remember a man whose life ended in a terrible tragedy back on Feb. 4, 1976, at the tender age of 24.

Excitement is building for Sunday’s annual Ricky Salzillo Memorial Game dinner, which last year attracted 225 people and raised approximately $8,000 that was distributed to a number of non-profit efforts.

“We’re hoping for a larger turnout that will mean a record raised for the different causes we help support,” said Steven M. Placella, a prominent Johnston attorney and the late Salzillo’s cousin. “This is a special day for a lot of people who all loved Ricky and vowed to never, ever let his name die.”

Over the years, the late Salzillo’s family and friends have stepped up to do whatever was necessary to make the annual dinner a success.

“Whether it was Nick Pagliaro, John Holder and Bill Iannotti preparing the food, or John Furia cooking back in those early years, dozens of people have created this terrific tradition,” Placella said. “Many people have had a hand in the dinner’s success.”

Likewise, Placella pointed to Vin LaFazia, who he said “could be heard barking out orders or selling tickets; even the spouses and children of Rick’s family and friends pitched in to make this near 20-year odyssey a great success.”

However, the driving force that makes the heart-warming event such a sparkling success each and every year is the giant and unmatched raffle held during the different courses that are prepared and served by the super staff of Ralph’s Kitchen at the ageless VFW hall.

“Make no mistake about it,” Placella said. “Frank Fede, a native Johnstonian and co-owner of Kingstown Liquor Mart on Post Road in North Kingstown, works tirelessly each year to provide a seemingly endless array of raffle prizes that are distributed at the dinner.”

Come Sunday during the dinner, which will begin at noon, Fede will be back “home” with a myriad of raffle prizes he hopes will surpass any and all records.

And that, Placella emphasized time and again during a recent press briefing, will make Al Salzillo – the late Ricky’s dad – “the happiest man in Johnston.”

That’s because every dollar raised will go for such special causes as eight college scholarships, the Johnston Memorial Cancer Events (JCME) and the ALS and FARA non-profit organizations.

“We have the perfect date for a perfect dinner,” Placella said. “We decided to hold it between championship and Super Bowl Sundays so there would not be any conflicts.”

It’s a formula that has worked – time and again – and will surface Sunday when people turn the clock back some 39 years, when the late Ricky Salzillo was killed in an accident on Route 295.

“We are still doing our best to honor his memory by doing our small part to help people and organizations that are in need,” Placella said. “We’re doing this in Ricky’s memory and honor, simply because that’s the way he lived his life – helping and doing for others.”

So the stage is set for the annual Ricky Salzillo Memorial Game Dinner, which features perhaps the best meal of its kind in Rhode Island and the giant raffle.

“His friends and relatives have chosen to honor the memory of a big, muscular and enormously popular young man who could melt sadness or anger with his eyes and smiles,” Placella said. “Had he been with us today, he’d have continued to make a different in all your lives.”

Tickets are priced at $35 each and may be obtained by calling the Kelley Gazzero VFW Post 2812 at 401-942-9500 or the Johnston Recreation Department at 401-272-3460.

“Even if you can’t come Sunday – or don’t like game dinners – we encourage people to purchase a ticket and be part of helping fund important things like college scholarships and battling cancer that kills kids,” Placella said.

Comments

No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here