On 3/13/2014, the Times-Picayune (
visit link) ran the following story:
"St. Joseph's Altar will be presented at Jean Lafitte's Visitor Center in New Orleans
By Jessie Lingenfelter, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune
on March 13, 2014 at 6:05 AM, updated March 14, 2014 at 6:40 PM
Every year New Orleans residents celebrate St. Joseph’s Day with a vast collection of altars around the city, all expressing gratitude for blessings in honor of the saint. While traditionally the celebration takes place on one day, March 19, Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve’s French Quarter Visitor Center will showcase a carefully crafted altar for two weeks at its location at 419 Decatur St.
The altar at Jean Lafitte’s Visitor Center is among several that will be erected throughout the New Orleans area to pay homage to St. Joseph.
The center's altar was created by Ann and Laura Guccione for the public to view from March 12 – 25. The sisters have deep familial roots in the centuries old celebration, ensuring that their display properly represents the appreciation of the relief that St. Joseph provided during a famine in Sicily.
“Our father’s family in one hundred percent Sicilian, and when we started looking at the history we wanted to get involved with the altars in the city,” Laura said. “Every year, the altars honor both the relief St. Joseph brought the people, and also those who have passed on during the year. It’s kind of a great neighborhood event - people bring food to share, and at the end, they give the food to the poor.”
The Catholic custom began in New Orleans in the late 1800s when Sicilian immigrants settled in the city. Today, the celebration is open to everyone, natives and visitors from all backgrounds, and offers a chance to share food and hospitality with others.
The Guccione sisters were also responsible for elaborate St. Joseph Day altars at Royal Street Grocery as well as St. Augustine Church in Treme in years past.
“It was really neat when we made the alters back then, there wasn’t internet so everyone shared their recipes through pamphlets – like how to make the traditional bread and cookies – and all of our friends got involved,” Laura said. “We had friends come from all over the country to experience it in New Orleans, they had not really ever heard of it before then.”
Though the altar at Jean Lafitte’s Visitor Center is made of non-perishable food items on account of its extended display, all of the customary items are represented. Props of bell peppers, citrus, olive oil and wine are present, to represent the commodities of Sicily, St. Joseph lilies to honor the saint, along with wood, sawdust and nails. As with tradition, the altar is presented in three tiers, representing the holy trinity, and offers fava beans to all who visit, for a promise of rich wealth.
“A lot of people think that there are no Italians in New Orleans, so it is kind of neat to show and tell people another part of our traditions in the city,” Laura said.
The Guccione sisters suggested that in addition their altar in at the visitor’s center, one of their favorite spots to visit on St. Joseph’s Day is at St. Louis Cathedral in the French Quarter and St. Joseph’s Church on Tulane Avenue.
The St. Joseph’s Day altar at Jean Lafitte’s Visitor Center will be open from9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. daily. Call 504.589.2636, extension 1."