Although Tollo is world-renowned for its food and wine traditions, the small town of 4,000 inhabitants is also known for its connection to the late and great global baseball spokesman Tommy Lasorda, who lived in Fullerton, California for nearly sixty years and whose parents hailed from this quaint mountain village in Abruzzo.
A large delegation from Fullerton, led by former Mayor and current city council member Bruce Whitaker, Laura Lasorda, daughter of Tommy and Jo Lasorda, Roberto Angotti, official ambassador and promoter of the Sister City agreement between the two cities, and members of the Fullerton Sister City Association were guests of Tollo Mayor Angelo Radica to celebrate the Sister City agreement signed remotely on May 7, 2022 to bridge the cultural connection across the Atlantic.
Tollo Mayor Angelo Radica said, "I am very happy to welcome the Fullerton delegation. Tommy Lasorda is the most important and famous citizen of Tollo. The story of Tommy Lasorda represents the 'American dream’. Lasorda never forgot Tollo. When he came to Tollo, in 1979, a square packed with people welcomed him. One day, secretly, he decided to come by car to better visit Tollo, a town he loved very much.”
Mayor Radica continued, "When it was possible to create the connection between Tollo and Fullerton, we immediately said 'yes'. With Bruce Whitaker, we signed the Sister City agreement between Tollo and Fullerton online. Today, we are dedicating a small space where there will be all the most beautiful and important objects related to Tommy Lasorda and donated to us by Laura Lasorda. Thank you for being here and thank you Federation Italiana Baseball Softball, for supporting this initiative from the start. Today, for Tollo and Fullerton, it is not a point of arrival but a point of departure.”
"It is a great pleasure to be here with you", said Bruce Whitaker, Fullerton Mayor city at the time of the signing of the Sister City relationship. "Almost four years ago, in a conference call on zoom, we united our cities through the signing of a Sister City agreement . We are proud to be united together with your beautiful municipality of Tollo. When Tommy Lasorda passed away in early 2021, our countries and the world were in the midst of the Coronavirus pandemic. The lockdown prevented us from honoring our Tommy in the best way. Tommy represents many characteristics of both of our small cities, along with the competitiveness inherent in many Italian athletes for whom we have a lot of respect. We thought it was very important to remember and commemorate Tommy by taking him as an example of our city, very oriented towards baseball, and establishing every September 22nd as Tommy Lasorda Day in Fullerton.
Bruce Whitaker continued, "Tommy preferred Fullerton to Hollywood, where he lived a few blocks from my house, in a working-class area. He lived in our city for 58 years, until he passed away. Tommy Lasorda had a global impact, he was the global ambassador for baseball and that is why we honor him. His passion, his enthusiasm for the game of baseball, and his respect and love for the fans, are unmatched. We are very proud to be part of his legacy and we are happy to share it with Tollo, the place where his father Sabatino and his mother Carmela are from. It is a pleasure to be here, to share with you this bond that will forever unite our cities."
After the welcoming ceremony in the Tollo Council Chamber, followed by an exchange of gifts and awards, the day continued at Tommy Lasorda Field, inaugurated on May 13, 2022, where the Tollo Dodgers and Macerata Angels U12 teams played. On this occasion, the Biographical Museum dedicated to Lasorda was inaugurated. The museum represents a tribute to the extraordinary life and career of Tommy Lasorda, born to Sabatino and Carmela Lasorda, where, from Tollo, they emigrated to the United States of America to build their lives and raise their children.
This event not only celebrated the memory of Lasorda, but also further strengthened the cultural bond between Tollo and Fullerton, officially sanctioned on October 25, 2021 with a video conference call that brought the mayors of the two cities, Angelo Radica and Bruce Whitaker. together for the first time.
Forza #Italia!
by Luca Giangrande and Roberto Angotti
(Photo of Tollo Mayor Angelo Radica receiving a proclamation from Fullerton City Council member Bruce Whitaker by LG-FIBS)
