Precious Cheese and the Little Italy Association Present
The 12th Annual Little Italy Precious Festa
Event’s Theme is “Celebrating the Legacy of the Sea”

San Diego – August 28, 2006 – The Little Italy Association and Precious Cheese, a leading producer of Italian and snack cheeses, will present The 12th Annual Little Italy Precious Festa on Sunday, Oct. 8, 2006, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. As one of the West Coasts largest Italian-American festival, the Little Italy Precious Festa features live entertainment, Italian cuisine and a myriad of specialty arts and crafts. This year’s theme, “Celebrating the Legacy of the Sea,” will honor the historical Italian connection to the sea and fishing tradition in San Diego’s Little Italy community.

Eddie Mekka will headline the event on the Precious Cheese stage at 3 p.m. on Sunday, and photo opportunities will be available. Mekka is best known to television audiences for his role as 'Carmine Ragusa', The Big Ragu, on the hit sitcom, "Laverne & Shirley.” Most recently, Mekka appeared on "Family Matters" and "The Jamie Foxx Show” and has also starred on "Guiding Light” and "Sunset Beach.” He received a Best Actor nomination by the Tony and Drama Desk committees for his role in “The Lieutenant” and plays in Fiddler on the Roof. Mekka can be seen touring with his night club act nationwide.

“The Precious Cheese family of products encompasses the heart and soul of Italian-American heritage,” said Fred Hermann, corporate director of marketing for Precious Cheese. “The Little Italy Precious Festa is an event that celebrates Italian traditions in San Diego and we are proud to be the title sponsor of an event that resonates with Precious Cheese’s commitment to preserving and celebrating Italian-American heritage.”

The Little Italy Precious Festa, an award-winning event, will be held in the heart of San Diego’s Little Italy district on India Street between Ash and Grape streets. Visitors can listen to an array of Italian music on three stages, take in an Italian motor sports show and watch stickball tournaments.

“Corso degli artisti,” an Italian street painting festival created exclusively for this year’s Festa event, will celebrate local artists with creative chalk drawings. Visitors can see the chalk drawings on both Saturday, Oct. 7, 2006 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on Sunday, Oct. 8, 2006 at Festa on Fir, Cedar and Birch Streets. Entertainment will be provided on both Saturday and Sunday.

The Italian Gulf Association will also showcase life-size models of the Pinta, Nina and Santa Maria boats at the event.

“The Little Italy Precious Festa celebrates the tremendous contributions Italians have made to this country and we are honored to provide a fun-filled family event for our community,” said Marco Li Mandri, president of the Little Italy Association. “This event also helps to provide perseverance and optimism in the Italian-American heritage.”
Those interested in learning more about the Little Italy Precious Festa can visit the Little Italy Association’s Web site at www.littleitalysd.com

About Precious Cheese
Precious Cheese is part of the Sorrento Lactalis family. In 1947, Louis Russo joined with two partners to form the Sorrento Cheese Company. The three men made Italian cheese in the family tradition that Louis had brought with him from his birthplace in Sorrento, Italy. In 1986, Sorrento purchased a cheese company based in San Jose, California. The owner at that time chose the name Precious because it was his wife’s first name. Sorrento is a leading producer of Italian and snack cheeses in the United States, providing products to retail, food service and industrial customers.

For more information, visit www.preciouscheese.com