IAET 2018 Man of the Year

Mario Giuseppe Weber

Mario Weber was
born in Park Ridge, Illinois, in 1978 to Alberto and Josette Mentesana Weber,
who trace their roots back to Sicily. His father’s family is from Termini
Imerese and his mother’s is from Campofelice di Fitalia. Mario has a sister,
Adriana, who is married to Stephen Metcalf, who originally hails from Fort
Worth, Texas.

An immense
influence and inspiration for Mario throughout his life were his maternal
grandparents, Giuseppe and Benedetta Mentesana. They practically raised him and
taught him the language and culture. It was because of them that Mario has such
a love for Sicily, its histories and traditions.

His mother,
Josette Mentesana Weber, is co-founder of the Italian Cultural Center, founder
of the Sicilian Heritage Museum, and director of the Italian Language and
Culture Camp and chairman of the Language and Culture Committee at Casa Italia.

Mario attended
high school at Loyola Academy and then Loyola University, where he earned a
bachelor’s degree in business and is on the verge of completing his MBA. He is
fluent in Italian, Sicilian and Spanish.

Mario had an
affinity for the car business at a very young age and began to get involved in
his father’s automobile dealership when he was in grade school as a car wash
porter. As he grew older, he eventually worked through all the positions in the
dealership until he took over as general manager at the age of 23. Today he
runs all aspects of the dealership and has taken the reins from his father, who
is now retired. From a small business started in 1991, Midway Dodge now
transacts with more than 7,500 customers a year.

Besides selling
automobiles, Mario saw another opportunity in the car business: customers with
credit issues or who were new in the country who could not be approved for
conventional bank financing. He started his own finance company to take care of
Midway’s customers and allow people who could not buy a car at reasonable
interest rates to make their dream of owning a car a reality. American Finance
was born in 2008 right at the start of the financial crisis and today has grown
into a mature finance company that does loans for 30 percent of the retail
customers who purchase vehicles at Midway Dodge.

Mario also runs
JB Real Estate management company. This company manages all the family’s
property holdings throughout Illinois as well as all remodeling and construction.
Mario is an entrepreneur at heart, growing and building businesses is in his
blood, and there is always a new endeavor around the corner.

The Chicago
Italian-American community has always been dear to Mario’s heart, and he jumps
at the chance to help non-profit organizations raise money to further the
cause. He is involved in the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans,
Italian Cultural Center, Casa Italia, Italian American Executives of
Transportation, Sicilian Heritage Museum, One Step at a Time Children’s
Foundation, and many more. In 2010, he received the prestigious honor of being
named the Grand Marshal of the Columbus Day Parade, to which he generously
donated a new Dodge Challenger to a lucky attendee.

His love for
volunteering and giving back was spurred by his mother, who has been involved
in teaching Italian language and culture for more than 35 years. Mario does not
believe in pure luck in life. “The harder you work, the luckier you get, that’s
what my Nonno Peppino always taught us,” he says. “Never give up and always go
for your goals and eventually you can accomplish anything. Don’t let anyone
tell you you can’t do it, because everything in life can be achieved through
determined perseverance.”

The Italian American Executives of Transportation are thrilled and honored to have Mario Giuseppe Weber as our 2018 Man of the Year.

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