Organizers say it does not take a strong back, it just takes faith to carry the 600-pound statue of St. Ann through Hoboken’s streets during the soon-to-commence annual festival to honor the patron saint of women. The procession of the female saint’s statue caps a seven day festival of Italian food, eating, singing and dancing that has taken place in the mile-square city each July for the last 90 years. This year’s festival, which commences on July 20 and runs until July 26, is expected to attract 100,000 people. It centers around St. Ann’s church, the small neighborhood Jefferson Street parish that began 100 years ago and houses the famous statue today. “When the statue comes out of the church, the tears just flow,” explained Marie Totaro, a parishioner and the lead festival organizer for the last 11 years. “Saint Ann is the patroness of women, so it is only women that carry the burden. You wind up with dents in your shoulders. But while you are doing it you do not feel a thing because the devotion and the love is so strong.” Organizers will carry the statue along the same 69-block route through the city that they always have. “After 90 years we have got this down,” explained Totaro. “We go up and down the streets, in and out, you name it. We have to because people are waiting for the statue just like they have for generations. When we get to them, we turn the statue towards them and usually they give us a little donation and we move on. It’s really something to see.” As usual, St Ann’s square, at Seventh and Jefferson streets, will be packed with vendors selling traditional Italian wares and foods – including a garlic vendor who will travel all the way from Texas just for the event. “I talked to her and I said, ‘You’re going to be in the area doing something else?’ ” related Totaro. “And she says ‘no,’ she’s read about this festival and she is driving up here for it and then turning around and going home.” Motivation That level of motivation to get to the event is not unusual. Since the festival began 90 years ago when a few hundred immigrants from Monte San Giacomo gathered in Hoboken to honor the patron saint of their small Italian town, the festival has grown tremendously. This year it was even listed in the L.A. Times as the premier summer event in New Jersey, said Maurice Fitzgibbons, a county freeholder who handles publicity for the event. “There are going to be more people here than there were for OPSAIL,” said Fitzgibbons with a laugh. “Its great that this festival has become so much a part of the summer experience in the city and the state.” After ducking into the church to pay homage to the saint – whose likeness will be removed from her shrine nine days before the culmination of the festival and placed at the altar – many visitors will immediately get on line to sample the fried dough-like creation known as the zeppole. Local legend has it that the specialty food is made from a secret recipe that was brought to Hoboken by Italian immigrants more than one hundred years ago. “The lines [for zeppole] go around the block sometimes,” explained Totaro. “People will wait an hour just to get a bag of zeppole. When I started doing this we had only two booths making them. Now we have five.” Visitors will be able to retire to a “caf
St. Ann’s festival coming soon; 90th annual celebration of tiny Italian town’s patron saint
