 Canada's "Price of Peace" monument in Ortona, Italy is filled with flowers after a special ceremony to commemorate the 65th anniversary of the Italian campaign. (Kathleen Harris/SUN MEDIA)
|
ORTONA, Italy — A grateful and once war-ravaged town paid tribute to Canadian soldiers Tuesday, its residents shedding tears and heaping flowers on a memorial to honour the fallen.
Two Italians who hold Canadians close to their hearts took part in a special ceremony to commemorate the 65th anniversary of the Italian campaign, a brutal 20-month offensive that took place in the last two years of the Second World War.
Francesca LaSorda, tiny yet spirited at 89 years old, laid the first red carnation at the Canadian “Price of Peace” memorial in a town square. LaSorda and her late sister Maria had forged close ties with Canadian troops during the war.
“To me, they were not like soldiers, they were like my brothers,” she said.
Hiding in a cramped, cold barn with 24 others, they befriended the Canadians, helped wash their clothes and kept contact after the war. Since the bronze life-sized Canadian statue was erected in Ortona in 1999, LaSorda has placed fresh flowers daily, becoming the monument’s unofficial guardian.
An emotional LaSorda often met Canadians then suddenly never saw them again. About 6,000 Canadians were killed during the Italian campaign, which included the bloody Battle of Ortona.
Gino Farnetti was a five-year-old orphan when Canadian troops arrived and took him under their wing. He has never forgotten their compassion and wishes there was a way he could repay their kindness.
“So much time has passed and I cannot get the time back — that is the problem,” he said. “I cannot reciprocate.”
Veterans Affairs Minister Greg Thompson said Ortona holds a special place in Canada’s history.
“The monument you see here is a lasting reminder of the terrible loss our two nations suffered here,” he said. “It is a reminder of the brutal bloodshed witnessed here, and it is a powerful reminder that freedom is not free.”
Thompson called the battle of Ortona a “grim and costly victory earned against almost impossible odds.” He recalled how Canadians arrived in the town just days before Christmas 1943, facing landmines and piled rubble set by the Germans to force men directly into snipers’ paths.
Ortona Mayor Nicola Fratino said the sight of the Maple Leaf of the Canadian military during the Second World War made locals realize “salvation was at hand.”
“We have an eternal debt of gratitude to the veterans of the Italian campaign and that is why, over the years, we have made every effort to embrace their visits and show them our affection,” he said. “As years pass, memories begin to fade and gradually we have realized the importance of leaving tangible monuments that will ensure our youth continue to pay homage to those who sacrificed so much for them and that they are made aware of the horrors of war.”
The massive death and destruction that occurred 65 years ago is “incomprehensible” today, Fratino said. He expressed gratitude to those who sacrificed their youth and lives for future generations, and said thanks to the visiting Canadians who returned to fly the “flag of freedom.”
“You have my word — we will remember,” he said.
kathleen.harris@sunmedia.ca
