When about 300 people gathered together to eat porchetta and drink homemade wine in the courtyard of St. Agnes Hospital over ten years ago, it was thought that this was a great one time event. If anyone had said then that the Vendemmia Festival would grow to become an annual event with over 6,000 people attending, it would have been hard to believe. But that is exactly what has happened.

A year after the first Vendemmia Festival, a second and bigger Vendemmia Festival was planned and the event has grown and gotten better with each passing year. One of the best improvements made was moving the festival to Girard Park. For several years, the Vendemmia Festival has been held in this beautiful park, located in the heart of the Girard Estates neighborhood.

Despite the wonderful memories made in Girard Park, in 2007 the time came to move to a new location in order to make the festival better. The new location was still in South Philly and featured beautiful, natural surroundings. But unlike Girard Park, the new location was on paved ground, so no one tripped over tree roots. The new location was more spacious so everyone had more room to move about. And the new location allowed more off-street parking.

The new location was a great opportunity to continue to improve the Vendemmia Festival. The only problem was that the new location did not have a name. Located in Packer Park, the new location nestled between Broad Street, Twentieth Street, Hartranft Street, and Pattison Avenue. The entrance to the new location was on Pattison Avenue, just across the street from the entrance to FDR Park. The new location could be seen through the wrought iron fence when coming out of Holy Spirit Church on Hartranft Street.

Having a festival in a location without a name was a difficult thing to do. Where do you tell people you are going? The suggestion was made to name this location Vendemmia Square. Why? Because the 2007 Vendemmia Festival was going to be so wonderful that the location was going to be put on the map.

This 2007 Vendemmia Festival was the best ever because not much changed beyond the location. Bob Pantano put together another stellar lineup of live entertainment. The best home wine makers again competed for the top honors. And some of the most amazing restaurants and specialty shops once again provided samples of their food.

But most importantly, you were there. You and your friends and your family drove south on Broad Street on the morning of September 30 with a car full of food. You turned right on Pattison Avenue and pulled into Vendemmia Square, excited to celebrate under the South Philly sun. And you joined more than 6,000 people who gathered together to celebrate along with you.

In the end, that is what makes the Vendemmia so special. It's the reason why people keep coming back year after year. It's the community. You arrive with your family and friends and instantly become a part of a larger family. We eat together. We drink together. We sing and we dance together. We celebrate as family, one large South Philly Italian family. And so it is with great anticipation that next year everyone gets together for another wonderful Vendemmia Festival.