ORDER OF THE SONS OF ITALY IN AMERICA
CARMEL S. MORINA LODGE 2580
ABOUT OUR LODGE
History
The Carmel S. Morina Lodge of the Order of the Sons of Italy in America was officially founded in October of 1985. The Lodge was purchased and renovated by members the following year. There had been an earlier iteration of the Sons of Italy in Paulsboro in the 1940's and many of our Lodge's founding members had family members in the original club. Today Lodge 2850 has almost 251 members from as close as Paulsboro and Gibbstown and as far away as Delaware. We enjoy a tight-knit community dedicated to Italian culture and heritage as well as helping others.
Values
The Sons of Italy was founded in 1905 with the purpose of assisting Italian immigrants and forming a fraternal organization for charitable and patriotic purposes. The three main values of the organization are Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity. The Sons of Italy works to end stereotyping and discrimination, especially of Italians and Italian Americans as well as working for a variety of charitable, patriotic, and community causes.
Philanthropy
We are an organization committed to helping others. The Lodge supports a variety of local charities and organizations and looks forward to expanding our reach as fundraising increases.
Who was Carmel S. Morina?
Cpl. Carmel S. Morina, of Paulsboro, NJ was born on February 7th, 1928. At the age of 23 he was killed in battle during the Korean War near Togsong-Ni on September 3rd, 1951. He served in the 7th Infantry Regiment 1 Co 3 BN 3rd Inf Div. and is buried in Eglington Cemetery in Clarksboro, NJ.
We are a national organization of men and women who represent the estimated 26 million Americans of Italian heritage, dedicated to promoting our culture, our traditions, our language, the legacy of our ancestors, and our contributions to the U.S. and the world. We are sons and daughters, grandmothers and grandfathers... We are philanthropists and we are model global citizens with purpose beyond ourselves. And we are proud and patriotic Americans of Italian heritage. We exemplify the very best of what it is to be Italian American.
Our Club in the News
"Sons Of Italy Sees A Future For Old Paulsboro Nightclub", Philadelphia Inquirer, 1986
The Grand Lodge of New Jersey was founded in 1911. It currently oversees 28 lodges around the Garden State.