“Marilyn’s Passion” Race Sept. 5 At Monadnock
Wolcott, CT – Monadnock Speedway will host the inaugural “Marilyn’s Passion Midget Race” on Saturday night, Sept. 5. The event memorializes the late Marilyn Angelillo, wife of 14-time owner champion Gene Angelillo and a dedicated NEMA officer. It will feature 45 laps of feature racing for the Northeastern Midget Association and the NEMA Lites.
A combined purse of $12,000-plus awaits the combined divisions. The NEMA winner will get away with at least $1,100. It will be the first Lites race to award prize money, the top three-spots divvying up $600. There’s NEMA heat winners money, a hard charger award plus a special dividend for the first female finisher.
“She was a true Midget fan, a real competitor and a hardworking officer,” said Marilyn’s daughter Laura Kibbe. “She was not into a lot of fancy, over-the-top stuff and it is within that scope we’re doing this. It’s about her love for the Midgets and NEMA.”
The Angelillo team adopted the “Marilyn’s Passion” theme following her death on Sept. 4, 2007.
Marilyn and Gene were a team. When they joined NEMA in 1980, it was Marilyn who suggested the number 45. “I was 45 and we lived at 45 Doran Street in Waterbury, CT” Angelillo says. “And it was Marilyn who came up with “Dumo’s Desire” to honor my late father Dominic.”
She was the club secretary for a decade, making vast improvements in communication both within the club and with outside sources including the media. Marilyn was a force in the annual production of the yearbook and the annual banquet.
“[Marilyn] was mother and coach to us all,” summed up long-time NEMA writer/announcer Chris Romano. “ She was a gem.”
“She was a hard worker for the #45 team and especially for NEMA,” said current President Mike Scrivani Jr. “So many of us still miss her.”
Angelillo and Kibbe thank Monadnock promoters Larry Cirillo and Fred Pafumi for their participation in the event.
Monadnock is an ideal venue for the race. Marilyn watched the Angelillo operation team win 11 races there between 1982 and 1997, all of them with Drew Fornoro driving. Overall, she shared in 108 Angelillo NEMA victories.
A large field is expected. The challenging Monadnock has become a favorite venue for NEMA and the Lites. It will be the third visit of the season, Randy Cabral and Nokie Fornoro the previous winners. P.J. Stergois won a Lites race at Monadnock earlier this year.
Sources: Pete Zanardi/NEMA PR