FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Contact:   Elissa Ruffino (NIAF) 202/939-3106 or elissa@niaf.org

(Washington, D.C. – May 6, 2010) Mike Modano, Stanley Cup champion and seven-time NHL All-Star for the Dallas Stars, will receive a NIAF Special Achievement Award in Sports at the National Italian American Foundation’s (NIAF) Texas Gala on May 15, 2010. The event will be held at the historic Adolphus hotel and features a 6 p.m. cocktail reception followed by a silent auction, awards program and dinner.

Regarded as one of the best American-born NHL players in history, Modano is the team’s alternate captain. He is the all-time goal-scoring and points leader among American-born players in the NHL and led the Stars to win the Stanley Cup in 1999. At age 18, he began his career with the Minnesota North Stars as the first overall selection in the1988 NHL Entry Draft. Modano’s 22-year career includes the 1991 and 2000 Stanley Cup Finals, and he has represented the United States at three Olympic Winter Games (1998, 2002, 2006). Modano has also been a finalist for the Calder Memorial Trophy, the Frank J. Selke Trophy and the Lady Byng Trophy.

Mike Modano, Stanley Cup champion and seven-time NHL All-Star for the Dallas Stars

Several prominent business executives will join Modano as honorees. Jay Lombardo, president and CEO of Lombardo Custom Apparel, will receive a NIAF Special Achievement Award in Fashion; Bruno Mascolo, CEO and a co-founder of international hair care business TONI&GUY, will receive a NIAF Special Achievement Award in Business and the Arts; and Victor “Vic” Salvino, dealer principal of Texas Kenworth Co., will receive a NIAF Special Achievement Award for Humanitarian Service. Additionally, Bruno Mascolo’s brother Gaetano Mascolo, also a co-founder of TONI&GUY, will receive a NIAF Special Achievement Award in Business and the Arts, posthumously.

President George W. Bush and Mrs. Laura W. Bush will serve as honorary patrons of NIAF’s Texas Gala.

Joe DePinto, president and CEO of 7-Eleven, Inc., will serve as the gala’s chairman. DePinto received a NIAF Special Achievement Award in Business at the Foundation’s 2008 Anniversary Awards Gala in Washington, D.C., and is a member of the NIAF Board of Directors. DePinto will be joined byDaniel A. DeMatteo, CEO and director of Gamestop Corporation, as well as prominent Italian and Italian-American business leaders, sports celebrities and community leaders.

Dinner tickets: $250-$1,000 per person. Attire: Cocktail. For sponsorship and ticket information, contact Geri Jones at 202/387-0600, jerry@niaf.org or visit www.niaf.org/texas.

The National Italian American Foundation (NIAF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving and promoting the heritage of Italian Americans. www.niaf.org