From left to right: Basil Russo, Cristiana Dell’Anna, Allegra Baistrocchi and J. Eustace Wolfington host a special screening of CABRINI in Cleveland, Ohio, on April 12.
Italian actress Cristiana Dell’Anna, the star of CABRINI, visited Cleveland’s Italian American community for a special screening of the acclaimed film, followed by a Q&A and meet-and-greet with audience members.
The event, held at a packed Cedar Lee Theatre on April 12, was co-hosted by ISDA President Basil Russo and Italian Consul Allegra Baistrocchi.
Among those in attendance included political and business leaders and CABRINI Executive Producer J. Eustace Wolfington. The film tells the remarkable story of Mother Cabrini, an intrepid nun who rose to global prominence by breaking barriers, championing the poor and becoming the first U.S. citizen to be canonized.
“The world is too small…”
Born in a tiny village in Italy in 1850, Cabrini’s childhood made her unlikely to ever leave the borders of her native Lombardy. She survived tuberculosis only to be stricken with smallpox and lifelong bronchitis. Before her twelfth birthday, she was given, at most, a few years to live.
And yet, despite her frailty, her resolve was unwavering, once quipping, “The world is too small for what I intend to do.” By the end of her life, Cabrini had founded 67 hospitals, orphanages and schools across the globe.
She was responsible for the largest transnational humanitarian empire the world had ever known, exceeding the charitable endeavors of all her contemporaries, said to include the Vanderbilts and the Rockefellers combined.
And all this Francesca Cabrini did as a woman (well before the right to vote, when women had no voice), as an immigrant (at a time when migrants were considered second-class citizens) and as a leader (as part of a male-dominant church structure).
An Unbroken Legacy
Cabrini’s hospitals would become the model of inclusive health care for the entire country – adapting standards of care, cleanliness and organization that were as innovative in her time as they are standard now.
Her child-centered educational philosophy preceded and mirrored those of Montessori schools worldwide, changing the very nature of classroom education. In 1946, Cabrini was canonized for her tireless care for the poor, the orphan and the immigrant.
After her canonization, a young woman was inspired to model her life after Mother Cabrini. In 1950 she established her own order, that woman was Mother Theresa of Calcutta.
A Mother to Us All
Cabrini’s legacy takes on deeper meaning as we celebrate Mother’s Day. Though not a mother in the traditional sense, she embodied the role through compassion and devotion.
Her life was a testament to the transformative power of service, offering love, shelter and dignity to the most vulnerable. In honoring Mother’s Day, we also honor women like her, whose maternal spirit helped change the world.
Happy Mother’s Day to all he madri and nonne in our lives!
See the critically-acclaimed film, CABRINI, here: https://www.angel.com/movies/cabrini
