One of the major benefits of conducting research into one's Family History is that the effort can pay big dividends in the form of finding lost or unknown relatives. As of October 6, 2003, I have been in contact with the following individuals:

 Anita Bruno, Old Forge, PA- Anita is the youngest daughter of Loreto DeAngelis, Rocco's older brother, and is my father's first cousin. Her brother Henry and sister Olga still reside in the Scranton area. Anita provided me with the black and white photos in the "DeAngelo Family" Gallery. These photos were all believed to have been lost in a house fire that my father started on 40^th Street in Brooklyn in the early 1940's, but my grandmother had been sending pictures to Loreto's family, where they had been kept for all these years.

 Dalia Scioscia, Pittsburgh, PA- Dalia is my 4^th cousin, once removed, on the DeAngelis side through the Gentile/Mucci line. She contacted me after Pierangela at Abruzzo 2000 noticed the link in our Family Trees. Also noteworthy is the fact that her grandfather, Gianbattista Lombardi, and my great-grandfather, Agostino di Giovanni, were born on the same street in Castel di Ieri (Via Coddardo) in the same year, 1865.

Dalia's granddaughter Brittany, of Nashville, TN, and my daughter, Michelle, who are teenagers, have become "E-pen pals". They are 6^th cousins.

 Eva DiVenanzio, L'Aquila, Abruzzo- This is the most exciting development of all. Piera provided me with a copy of the Castel di Ieri telephone directory, which had 13 listings for the name DeAngelis. I sent each a family tree and form letter in Italian stating that I was Rocco's grandson, and requested a reply if the recipient was a descendant of one of Marco DeAngelis' other sons who remained in Italy: Giambattista, Donato and Angelo. I received a letter in May 1999 from Donato's granddaughter Eva, whom I met when we visited in July 2000.

 Darren Schillizzi, Sacramento, CA- Darren, who is a deputy sheriff, found me through Il Circolo Mezzojusaro. While we haven't totally confirmed the connection, Darren is related to Sal Schillizzi, the locksmith, to whom we are also related.

 Giambattista Pizzochia, Castel Di Ieri, Abruzzo- A recent result of the form letter. Giambattista is the grandson of Giambattista DeAngelis, another of Rocco's brothers. He works as a forest ranger in the Grand Sasso National Forest. I also met him in July 2000.

 Vincent "Tony" Schillizzi, Camarillo, CA- Tony is my first cousin, once removed on the Schillizzi side, son of Tony and Stella Schillizzi. He "escaped" Brooklyn in 1957, going on to a career in the U.S. Navy, ultimately settling in Southern California. He has filled in a lot of the gaps for me on the Schillizzi side, supplying photos and family listings. He will have contributed greatly to any success I have in the future in researching this line.

 Bruno DiGiammarino, Siracusa, Sicily- Bruno found this website, and contacted me in September 2003. He is my second cousin, the grandson of Nanny's sister, Francesca DiGiovanni of Sulmona, who is 95! (They don't make women like this anymore!) His father is her son, Mario DiGiammarino.