st. anthony's italian festival begins tomorrow

A tradition, started in 1925 in Wilmington, of honoring St. Anthony of Padua with a parade has turned into an eight day long festival that has seen over 300,000 visitors each of the last few years. The web site of Wilmington's Little Italy calls it the biggest and most widely attended church festival anywhere. The times and days are: June 9 through June 16, 2002, weekends, 2 p.m. to 10:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, 5:30p.m. to 10:30 p.m. You don't have to be an Italian, or a Catholic to attend, but it helps if you like Italian food and music. There are rides for the children, games of chance, beer and wine, and many bands.