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Silvio and Mary
mary macdonald |
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Silvio and Mary met in the Prime Time Band in 1996. They both play clarinets in the band. Silvio began with the band at its inception in 1995. Mary joined in April, 1996. They have been inseparable companions since 1999. |
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Silvio Di Loreto is known affectionately in the Santa Barbara area as the "Godfather of Real Estate." He has lived in Santa Barbara since January 1, 1956, when he decided he wanted to spend the rest of his life here. Silvio has been very active in the community during the last fifty years. In September 2005 he celebrated his 80th birthday. His birthday party, held on the West Campus of Santa Barbara City College, had about 550 people in attendance. Silvio was born in Rochester, New York. He entered the Army Air Corp in 1943 and was discharged as a 1st Lieutenant after serving for several years in the South Pacific. He then became a photographer in Rochester. In late 1955, he and his family moved to California, reaching Santa Barbara on January 1, 1956. CookingHis pancakes have become famous
at the annual Kiwanian Pancake Breakfast. Silvio has donated his time
and energy for over 28 years of the 50+ years the breakfast has been
served. He also participates in the I- Madonnari festival, which donates
its income to the Childrens Creative Arts Project. His cooking show
is sponsored by the Italian community and was seen regularly on Channel
17 television.
Community LeadershipSilvio is still very active in the community donating many hours to such organizations as SCORE, serving as Chairman for three years. SCORE is an agency of the Federal Government associated with the SBA ( Small Business Administration) It's mission is to help people in business. . He even convinced Mary to join the group and develop a website for the local chapter. He currently serves on the Board of directors for: the Italian Cultural Heritage Foundation (and, along with Mary, is on the Cinema Italiano Committee); AIWF (American Istitute of Food and Wine); Hillside House; Rental Housing Mediation Task Force ( he retired after 27 years of service & recently returnedin 2005 after an absence of three years). He also belongs to UNICO (an Italian service club), the Italian Boot Club, Aeromedico, Channel City Club, the President's Council for Santa Barbara City College.. He was honored to receive the Anti-Defamation League Award in 1989. In 1991 he was the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Santa Barbara News-Press. Previously, he has served as a board member or officer for many organizations in the area including Friendship Center, Santa Barbara Mental Health, Calm & the Victorian Theater Hall, Transition House, Valle Verde, City College Foundation, Santa Barbara Symphony, Aeromedico and others. He also served as a volunteer mediator with the Santa Barbara Rental Housing Mediation Task Force for over 27 years, retiring in 2002. Recently, he rejoined the group at their request. HobbiesIn 2002, hHe was honored by the SB Newspress
as cook of the week. In his spare time, he enjoys snow skiing,
flying, gardening; making pottery, foraging for wild mushrooms, and scuba diving. He
took a trip to the South Pacific a few years ago where he dove at the
Great Barrier Reef in Australia, the Cook Islands and also with Jean
Michel Costeau's dive team in Fiji. He does underwater digital video
photography in diverse areas around the world from the Carribean to
the Philippines. He also has played clarinet in the Prime Time Band
since 1995.
BusinessHis company, Sunset
Co Realtors, which he owned and managed for over 40 years was recognized
several times by the Santa Barbara News Press and The Independent two publications as the best real estate company in Santa Barbara.
FamilyHe has four children: Dante who lives in NYC and is a producer, Todd who lives in San Diego wi th his wife Kelly. They have three children; Tony and wife, Kim, live in Santa Barbara and have
three children; daughter, Camilla, and her husband, Joe, live in Cambria
with their son, Daniel. Dante recently received an Emmy for a movie
he produced for ShowTime television.
There are seven grandchildren altogether - three boys and four girls: (oldest to youngest) Andressa, Cole, Daniel, Oceana, Siena, Loren, and Indigo. |
Mary moved to Santa Barbara in 1993 from the midwest. She was looking for a more temperate climate. She and Silvio travel extensively and have visited the Caribbean, Italy, Antarctica, the Philippine Islands, Alaska, Cuba, and various places throughout the United States. They regularly attend band camps and are lifetime members of the New Horizons Music Group. Her other hobbies include reading, cooking, gardening, and pottery and various kinds of other artwork, including computer graphics. She became a certified diver in 2000 in the Philippine Islands (Silvio has been certified since 1956). Mary was born in Muskegon, Michigan. She is the fourth of six children. Her father was a fireman who later became the Fire Chief in Muskegon. After attending the local "Junior College," Mary moved to Kalamazoo, Michigan to pursue her teaching degree (Western Michigan University). Later, she moved to Flint, Michigan, and then Minneapolis, Minnesota, where she spent 17 years. Business/CareersMary has had many "careers" during her lifetime. She started as a teacher in elementary school, then was fortunate enough to be a fulltime mother for a number of years. She later began working for IBM in various administrative posts in Billing and Accounts Receivable. She served for three years in an Administration Management position. While working for IBM, she returned to school and got a second degree in Business Management with a minor in Computer Science. She so loved Computer Science, that she requested a new position as a Systems (software) Engineer and left her management position in IBM. The new position included an additional year of education by IBM (while paying her salary). She was educated in mainframe support and provided software support for mid-range, VSE & VM systems. She also taught classes to her peers and IBM Business Partners in various computer applications. Her career with IBM was during the seventeen years that she lived in Minnesota. Santa Barbara, etc.After accepting an early retirement package in 1991, she moved back to her home town, Muskegon, Michigan, where she taught computer science classes and business math classes at her first alma mater, Muskegon Community College. Mary moved to Santa Barbara in 1993 to be nearer her daughter, Beth, who then resided here, as well as to be in a more temperate climate for health reasons. Mary worked for a time at UCSB in the Geography Department as a research assistant. She worked for a blind professor and used her computer experience to work with adaptive equipment as well as preparing texts for publication. She fully retired in 1998. Mary's son-in-law, John received his Master's Degree at UCSB in 1994. As a result, Beth and family moved back to Minnesota. Mary opted to stay in Santa Barbara (Minnesota is not a good place to retire, unless you're a "snow bird.") Both of Mary's children now live in Florida. Her daughter, Beth, lives with husband, John, and daughter, Molly, in St. Petersburg. Beth received her Master's Degree in 2007. She is a Social Worker. Molly attends high school. Son, Doug and his wife, Traci, live and work in Port Charlotte, Florida. This gives Silvio and Mary a good excuse to take a two week vacation in Florida each year. Current ActivitiesEven though she is now fully retired, she remains very active. She developed websites for three local non-profits and continues to serve as webmaster for two of them: Prime Time Band (since 1998); and The Italian Cultural Heritage Foundation of Santa Barbara (ICHF) (2002). She is currently on the Board of Directors for ICHF where she has served as co-Chair of Cinema Italiano in 2006 and 2007. She is also co-editor of the ICHF Newsletter. She also is co-chair of the Genealogy Program. She served on the Board of Directors for the Prime Time Band from 1999 - 2002, and served as the Treasurer. She was the first woman (and third person) named to the Prime Time Band Hall of Distinction in January 2003. Other memberships include Aeromedico, the Channel City Club, UNICO, the American Institute of Wine and Food (AIWF) and the President's Council for Santa Barbara City College. Mary enjoys graphics and has also developed brochures, flyers, posters and other graphics for SCORE, ICHF and the Prime Time Band. |
