Veterans Day - November 11 (Part 2)
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Filippo Spadi and Vittorio Francin
Unbelievable thanks to Filippo Spadi, Director of the Gotica Toscana War Museum (The Museum of the Gothic Line), and his long-time volunteer Vittorio Francin.
Their museum is superb! They are keen on knowing the history of the horrible September/October (1944) war campaign in their home area.
Christian Nizzi and Venerio Pompei
(Posed with Nizzi (C) and Pompei at the site of the Battle of Mount Mezzano near Castel San Pietro Terme, Italy, on November 17, 2018)
Again, thanks to these two men. Nizzi is a local expert on the history of the 85th Division, while Pompei is a regional master of the 88th Division's history. The latter dug and easily found so many WWII items, such as spent bullets and M-1 clips, for my group of tourists despite 75 years of the underground. This battle was the last one before the winter break (October 15, 1944.)
Marco Perale
Belluno, Italy, is where the 337th Regiment was ordered to occupy this city militarily after the German Surrender on May 2, 1945. One of their duties was to corral the German surrendered soldiers, but the American soldiers had to protect the prisoners from angry partisan Resistance groups.
Of course, a special thanks goes to Marco Perale, once a vice mayor of Belluno, for showing us around the beautiful city. Also, he is a Venetian guide.
More Thanks
After I inspected the Toscana Ranch on December 1, 2018, to see whether one soldier was posing for a picture there, the ranch owner wrote the below for me.
My significant thanks to the Museo di Roma (Museum of Rome) for giving me a free pass to see the “War Is Over” exhibit on October 14, 2015, after learning that my dad fought in Italy.
IMAGINE that these individuals mentioned above VOLUNTEERED to guide my tourists and me because they wanted to thank our fathers for keeping these Italians free from the dictatorships.
….Mapped: Where veterans live.
Look around ... and thank someone who served.