In Hoboken there is not only a tradition: a belonging is kept, a story that crosses oceans, generations, sacrifices and pride. In these weeks the city is preparing to live an unrepeatable moment: the 100th Anniversary Hoboken Italian Festival – Madonna dei Martiri, a century of Molfettese devotion in New Jersey, a century of roots that have never stopped blooming.
At 308 Jefferson Street, the church of San Francesco is already dressed as a party. For months, on the outside, there was a large banner: the number 100, the image of the Madonna and Child, the dates from 10 to 13 September, and the call to the novena before the celebration.
A simple but very powerful symbol: a hundred years of Apulian history on American soil, a hundred years of families who have never forgotten their “Mom”.
Because that’s what the molfettesi emigrants call it: their mother. A definition that is not only affection, but identity. Our Lady of Martyrs is the root that accompanied them on the journey, the light that guided their steps, the tradition that they gave to their children and grandchildren with an almost sacred care.
The largest Italian community in North America is Apulian, and Hoboken. They are families departed from Molfetta with light suitcases and heavy hearts, bringing with them dreams, values, traditions and a devotion that has never known boundaries. For a hundred years they have kept the feast, defended it, handed it down. They turned a memory into a live, shared, vibrant heritage.
The Oll Muvi Association, through the brand I Love Molfetta, has been following this story for years. She tells her, promotes her, lives her. We know well the immense work of the Madonna dei Martiri Society of Hoboken, a commitment that is not seen only in the days of the feast, but in the months of preparation, in meetings, in choices, in the care of details.
A few days ago the banner was moved to leave space to the large rose window, a bright symbol that came to Hoboken thanks to a project designed by Roberto Pansini, a reference point for the immigrant communities. His overseas missions brought Puglian luminaries, traditions, colors, emotions. A work that also gave life to the documentary “We Light the Tradition (Let’s Light Tradition)”, winner of three international awards and presented in numerous film festivals around the world. A story that made Hoboken’s story shine in everyone’s eyes.
In the church of San Francesco there was the novena, faces, families, generations returning home even though thousands of kilometers are far away. Also a torch, carrying in procession the painting, the icon of the Madonna dei Martiri on the streets of Hoboken.
In these days Hoboken is transformed: it becomes an overseas Molfetta, a place where faith meets memory and renews it. The 100th anniversary is not only an anniversary: it is a hug between past and future. It is proof that the roots, when they are strong, do not break. It is the testimony of a people who has been able to bring their identity beyond the Atlantic and make it part of American history.
Because this isn’t just a party. It is the story of a people who never stopped feeling united.
The article La Novena at St. Anna for the hundredth Hoboken Italian Festival comes from IlNewyorkese.
