Special to the Journal
The North Shore Philharmonic Orchestra will make its annual appearance in Revere when Music Director Robert Lehmann conducts the Robert A. Marra Memorial “Sounds of Christmas” Concert Sunday, December 17 at 4:00 p.m.
Admission to the concert is free and everyone attending is requested to bring a generous donation of non-perishable food to benefit The Revere Food Pantry.
The concert is sponsored by Bocchino Insurance, East Boston Neighborhood Health Center, Massport, Comcast, Astound/RCN, and Action Emergency Services.
“The concert really has become a hallowed Christmas tradition in Revere,” said concert co-chair Robert Marra Jr., president of the Orchestra and son of the late NSPO violinist/concertmaster after whom the concert is named. “It’s almost 50 years since the first one in 1976, and so many people who attend bring a lifetime of memories. The Food Drive has been part of the event since 1990, and every year we witness people’s generosity and sense of community. It is really something special.”
Dom Bocchino, President of Bocchino Insurance, has been co-chair and a sponsor of the concert since 2006, when one of the previous sponsors was unable to take part. “Dom stepped right up when he heard the concert might not happen that year,” said Marra. “And he’s been part of it ever since.”
Bocchino said that the Food Drive was too important to let the event falter. “When I first got involved as a sponsor,” he said, “I knew that this was an event that was important to our community, not only to celebrate the Christmas season, but to help the Food Pantry carry on its mission in helping those in need. Over the years, we’ve seen the Food Drive grow and become part of the tradition. It is an event that brings the community together in so many ways. I’m grateful to be able to help carry on this tradition.”
The Orchestra will be joined by soprano Katie Oberholtzer, who will be making her first appearance in Revere. Katie is a jazz vocalist and recently was runner-up place in the 2023 International Ella Fitzgerald Jazz Vocal Competition.
Revere High School senior Maya Merino will write and narrate an original essay as part of the concert program. “We started this a few years ago,” Marra said. “It’s a chance to have a student’s voice deliver a meaningful message.
The Concert is named in memory of violinist Robert A. Marra, a lifelong Revere resident and teacher at Revere High School who was concertmaster of the Orchestra for over 50 years before his death in 2002. “The concert is a wonderful tribute to my father. He was one of the people who brought the concert to Revere in 1976, and it is played in his beloved St. Anthony’s,” said Marra Jr. “And now, the concert features a connection to Revere High School, where he taught from 1950 to 1990, that makes it even more significant.”
Another connection to Revere High: members of the RHS football team will lend their muscle to help load the donated food into a truck for delivery to the Food Pantry. “Dad was an ardent RHS football fan, so he’d appreciate this.”
Other contributors to the concert include members of the St. Anthony’s Holy Name Society, who collect and box the food as patrons arrive, and the St. Anthony’s Youth Group, who haul up the chairs and set up the altar area for the concert. Mike Zaccaria of Action Emergency Services provides a truck to load and transport the food. “It’s a joint effort by a lot of hands for a wonderful event,” said Marra. “We know the people will enjoy the concert and we ask them to be generous with their food donations.”
