Fabrizio Michelassi named Honoree of 2025 Columbus Celebration Weekend

Internationally renowned surgeon Dr. Fabrizio Michelassi to join Grand Marshal Joe Moglia leading this year's Columbus Day Parade up 5^th Avenue on October 13^th

NEW YORK, Sept. 8, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Columbus Citizens Foundation is proud to announce that Dr. Fabrizio Michelassi is an Honoree of this year's Columbus Celebration and will join Grand Marshal Joe Moglia to help lead this year's Parade.

Fabrizio Michelassi is the Lewis Atterbury Stimson Professor and Chairman of the Department of Surgery at Weill Cornell Medicine and Surgeon-in-Chief at New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center. An internationally renowned, board-certified gastrointestinal surgeon with a strong expertise in the surgical treatment of inflammatory bowel disease, gastrointestinal and pancreatic cancers, Dr. Michelassi has contributed new insight in the surgical treatment of pancreatic and colorectal cancers, ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease through research and participation to multiple clinical trials. He has pioneered the development of important new techniques that ensure better outcomes and improved quality of life for patients with rectal cancer and ulcerative colitis. Author of more than 340 papers, book chapters and abstracts, he is also known for developing a procedure, now known as the Michelassi strictureplasty, designed to avoid sacrificing large amounts of bowel during surgery for Crohn's disease.

Dr. Michelassi was born in Pisa and received his MD from the University of Pisa, School of Medicine. He did his residency at NYU and then joined the University of Chicago where he stayed for twenty years during which time he became the Thomas D. Jones Professor of Surgery, Chief of the Section of General Surgery and vice-chair of the Department of Surgery. In 2004, Michelassi was recruited by NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center in New York City to become the Lewis Atterbury Stimson Professor, Chairman of the Department of Surgery and Surgeon-in-Chief at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center

In addition to many prestigious awards in the U.S., including the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Award, the American Cancer Society Cancer Development Award and the Distinguished Leadership Award from the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America, Dr. Michelassi has been widely recognized by his country of birth. In 2009, in recognition of his many lifetime achievements, Dr. Michelassi was honored as an Official of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Italy with the rank of Commendatore, the most prestigious and important distinction awarded by the President of the Republic of Italy to Italian citizens of particular merit. He was also inducted as a member of the American Society of the Italian Legions of Merit (ASILM), the Italian-American Society comprised of those 600 individuals who have been so decorated by the Republic of Italy. Dr. Michelassi received the prestigious 2010 Golden Lion Award from the Order of the Sons of Italy in America and the "Campano d'Oro" medal from the University of Pisa, the highest honor that can be accorded to a University of Pisa alumnus. In 2012, he received the "Grand Award of Merit," the most prestigious award of the American Society of the Italian Legions of Merit, in recognition of his accomplishments, dedication and leadership that have improved the lives of numerous Americans, Italians and Italian Americans.

"We are happy to recognize Dr. Michelassi and his outstanding achievements in medicine. Dr. Michelassi is widely recognized in Italy and the United States as both a leading surgeon and a professor in the field of gastrointestinal surgery. We are privileged to have him among this year's honorees," stated Columbus Citizens Foundation President Christopher Loiacono.

Commented Dr. Michelassi, "I am deeply humbled and grateful to be selected as a 2025 honoree by the Columbus Citizen Foundation. The Foundation's dedication to preserving Italian American heritage and supporting future generations is an inspiration. This honor serves as a powerful motivation to continue uphold the values the Columbus Citizen Foundation embodies."

The annual Columbus Day Parade, the largest celebration of Italian American heritage and culture in the United States will take place on Monday, October 13, 2025, beginning at 11:30 a.m. and will include marching bands, floats, and over 100 marching groups up the Fifth Avenue parade route, from 44^th Street to 72^nd Street. Groups, institutions, and partners from across the United States and Italy will take part in this year's celebration. The parade will be broadcast on ABC-7 from 12 p.m. – 3 p.m.

ABOUT COLUMBUS CITIZENS FOUNDATION:
Columbus Citizens Foundation is a New York City non-profit organization committed to fostering an appreciation of Italian American heritage and achievement. The Foundation, through a broad range of philanthropic and cultural activities, provides opportunities for advancement to deserving Italian-American students through various scholarship and grant programs. The Foundation organizes New York City's annual Columbus Celebration and Columbus Day Parade, which has celebrated Italian-American Heritage on New York's Fifth Avenue since 1929. For more information contact [email protected].

SOURCE Columbus Citizens Foundation