Festivals in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Maryland

Ben Mroz, a parishioner of St. Nicholas of Tolentine Church, slices the porchetta from Esposito’s, for sandwiches to be sold to the hungry Festival participants.

In the annual Italian Festival celebrated Oct. 1, Rev. Nick Martorano celebrates Benediction on the steps of St. Nicholas Church after the Procession of the Saints. The Verdi Italian Marching Band is providing the music.

Inside St. Nicholas of Tolentine, festival-goers look at statues of the saints covered with donations left by faithful in search of intercession for their needs and worries.

Rev. Monsignor John Marine (left) and Most Rev. Nelson J. Perez, the Archbishop of Philadelphia, lead the procession with the statue of St. Padre Pio through the streets of Holland, Pa., during the parish’s annual Padre Pio Festival.

During the eighth annual Padre Pio Festival held Sept. 16 and 17 at St. Bede the Venerable Church in Holland, Pa., Rev. Ryan Nguyen blesses the faithful with a holy relic – the glove of St. Padre Pio.

More than 20,000 people attended the inaugural Galbani Maryland Italian Festival from Sept. 29 through Oct. 1 at the Harford County Equestrian Center. The event was organized by the Society of Italian American Businessmen, and raised more than $300,000 for the group’s charitable giving programs.

The excitement lasted well into the evening at the Galbani Maryland Italian Festival. The family-friendly festival included a blend of Italian food and retail vendors, carnival rides and midway games, national and regional entertainment and a piazza serving wine, beer and liquor. There was also a bocce tournament and a celebrity cheese-stacking contest.

Tommy C. entertains the crowd with vocal classics from the 1950s and 1960s at the 17th annual Olde Time Italian Festival that ran Sept. 29 and 30 at Fox Park in Wildwood, N.J.

Spectators enjoy the music at the Olde Time Italian Festival in Wildwood, which included a Procession of the Saints, delicious Italian food favorites, merchandise vendors, games, and continuous free live entertainment.