Congratulations Miss Italian Festival 2009
Mary Battaglia
In Memory of Anthony "Tony" Miceli

Mary is the daughter of Joseph Battaglia and Angela Tronolone. She is seventeen years old and recently graduated from Hutchinson Central Technical High School.

She finished her senior year being ranked eighth in her class, and was accepted to attend Canisius College this coming fall. She was selected to be a member of the Urban Leadership Learning Community at Canisius, an extremely competitive program where only ten deserving students from across Buffalo were chosen. She was awarded a scholarship in the amount of $112,500, which covers 75% of the total tuition cost for four years. She is planning to study in the field of communications.

Mary comes from a strong Italian background. Her grandfather, Joseph Battaglia Sr., owned and operated the famous Vienisu pizzeria on the West Side of Buffalo for many years. She is very excited to be a part of this year's event, and honored to be named Miss Italian Festival 2009.