Community Corner

Robinson Roots and Good Sausage Key to Business Owner's Success

Local sausage maker has earned the business professional of the year award from the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame.

For Ernie Ricci III, sausage is life.

Since he was a child growing up in McKees Rocks, Ricci has been involved with the family business, . He used to work alongside his grandmother Stella, stuffing sausages with an old hand-crank stuffer while she held the casing.

Yeas later Ricci, now the owner of the shop, has been named the 2012 Business Professional of the Year by the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame (NIASHF) Pittsburgh Chapter.

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“I was nominated for the award as a local business professional, and that was it, I was selected,” said Ricci, 56, who played high school football for and in college for Washington & Jefferson College.

“It was a great dinner, and now moving forward, it’s a great organization to be involved with," he said. 

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The NIASHF Pittsburgh Chapter was founded in 1986 by Dan Marino, Sr. to highlight local accomplishments and provide scholarship money to Italian-American student-athletes. Since its inception, the Pittsburgh Chapter has awarded more than $679,000 to more than 133 area high school students.

“It’s about people giving back,” said Tony Ferraro, secretary of the Pittsburgh NIASHF Chapter. “Ricci’s gives back to the community, so we chose to honor him that night.”

Now, Ricci plans to author a cookbook featuring sausage recipes, titled Mangia Salsicca! Cooking With Sausage. All proceeds from the book will benefit the Catholic organization The Little Sisters of the Poor.

“He’s worked so hard over the years, especially when he took over the business from my grandfather to build it up,” said Ricci's son, Ernest Ricci IV, 25, of Florida. 

“He does a lot for the community, does a lot of fundraising, and does everything he can, especially for his family,” he said. 

Ricci is also the vice-chairman of the Allegheny County Health Department (ACHD) Food Advisory Board. He got the position after receiving an award for food excellence, said Steve Steingart, 62, of Squirrel Hill, the chief of food safety for the ACHD.

“We always try to invite one past winner to the board for a three-year term,” said Steingart. “He was such a good member and so active that he became vice chair. He’s been an integral part of our board for the past 15 years.”

Ricci prides himself on being an active member of the community. In 2006, he moved his business from Stowe to Robinson. 

“The beauty about Robinson is you get a lot of traffic, but you have a population in Robinson that’s been here for generations,” Ricci said. “So it’s a very stable community, and that’s what makes it good, that’s what makes it solid because it’s two or three generations that grew up in this whole area that just stayed, and the growth is the new people moving in.”

Ricci calls his move to Robinson among the best he's made as a business owner. He is now looking to open at second location in Beaver's main commercial district, an effort that could bookend route 60 with his business.

“Robinson should be very proud to have him,” Steingart said.


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