News
Only two months left to apply for a scholarship
Remember: We have moved up our application deadline for our scholarship program. The new application deadline is October 31. Take the time to apply now!
Applicants must be an SPSCA member in good standing, at least 18 years of age and a U.S. citizen. You must also have a basic knowledge of the Italian language.
The chance to learn Italian at the famous Universita per Stranieri in Perugia is too good to let slip through your fingers! Go to our scholarship page now to read more about it.
Download your application form today! The October 31 deadline is just two months away.
Raffle tickets available at Aug. 13 picnic
Now you have one more reason to attend this year's Members' Picnic and Meeting. Raffle tickets have been printed and will be available for sale. At $5 per ticket, it is certainly one the area's best raffle deals.
The grand prize winner wins round-trip airfare to Rome for two (not to exceed $1,350 round-trip per ticket); a week's stay for two at a historic hotel in Perugia’s city center, and transfers between Rome and Perugia.
This year, there's an extra bonus for the winner: A four-hour Taste Perugia food tour! This cultural experience takes you behind-the-scenes to a variety of tasting locations in historic Perugia, including a chocolate shop, spice merchant, wine shop, gelateria and more!
The drawing will be held the last night of Cinema Italian Style in November. Read the small print here.
Second and third place raffle prizes will be a selection of Italian wine and a five-week Italian language course, donated by Seattle's premiere Italian language school, Percorso Italiano.
We thank this year's raffle sponsors, Taste Perugia Food Tour and Percorso Italiano.
This year's picnic is on Aug. 13 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. The address is: 33801 SE Courtney Road, Ravensdale, WA 98051. More information in the newsletter and on previous posts. See you there!
July-August newsletter is here!
We have a busy two months coming up. Don't miss a minute of it!
Whether you're interested in our members picnic on August 13 or the dedication of Piazza Perugia on October 14, you can read about these happenings and more in Il Grifone July 2017 here.
If you're not a member yet, it's easy to join. See more details here. Open doors to international friendships, cultural exchanges and networking opportunities.
Join us for the members picnic August 13
As usual, several delicious entrees will be provided. Our host, Dan Borracchini, will make the pasta, cooked al dente, and the SPSCA board will be grilling sausages. Everything else is potluck. That means you!
Please contribute a salad, antipasto dish, snacks or a dessert, plus whatever you'd like to drink, both alcoholic and non. RSVP here and tell us what's in your picnic basket and how many guests you are bringing.
The picnic is your chance to meet new members, catch up with old friends and learn what SPSCA has coming up for the rest of 2017. We'll also elect board officers.
We have an opening for a board member this fall. If you'd like to join the board, send an email to [email protected]. Tell us in about 100 words what you can bring to our group as a new board member.
Date: Sunday, Aug. 13, 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Address: 33801 SE Courtney Rd
Ravensdale, WA 98051
Second-graders in Perugia and Seattle learn more about each other's history
SPSCA has an exciting educational outreach project underway developed by board member Marylin Bard. The project is focused on building awareness and fostering a greater understanding between diverse cultures, histories and geographic regions. Participants are second-graders at Collodi Elementary in Perugia and the John Stanford International School in Seattle.
Last fall, Bard explored Northwest Coast Native American history with students at Perugia's Collodi Elementary. She shared stories, songs and legends and allowed the children to examine miniature Native objects created just for this project, such as baskets and wood carvings.
She also talked about the significance of Sister Orca, a 26-foot bronze orca fin created by well-known local Native artist Marvin Oliver, who is also Bard's brother. SIster Orca was installed in Perugia nine years ago as a symbol of our sister-city friendship.
In Seattle, John Stanford second-grade teacher Karol Franz (left, shown with Bard who is holding an image of Sister Orca) incorporated information about both sister cities into her social studies units.
The students looked at photos and talked about the similarities and differences between the cities. Both classes exchanged letters and drawings, helping each child to personalize the exchange.
Bard is returning to Perugia this fall to continue the educational outreach.