Sept. 23, 2009 Meeting 

Leo Politi was born in Fresno, California in 1908. At age 6, he
and his family moved to Italy where he began his art training
at the Royal Palace of Monza. He returned to Fresno and
launched his literary career in 1938 with his childrens book,"Little Pancho". In 1950 he was honored with the Caldecott Medal for "the nation's
most distinguished children's picture book" for "Song of the
Swallows." Over the years he wrote many more widely-
acclaimed books and achieved worldwide fame prior to his
passing away in 1996. A public library, a park, a plaza and an
elementary school have been named for him. The Centennial of
his birth saw many commemorative celebrations in California
and the nation.