Nina Ganci
Leonardo Ganci (Dad) as a young man
The Immigrant with the Tatty Brown Suitcase
(Extracts from a self-published book)
Italy (1930 – 1940)
Haile Selassie is crowned Emperor / "King of Kings of Ethiopia" at Addis Ababa's Cathedral of St. George in a lavish ceremony attended by royals and dignitaries from all over the world.
Flashed the news headlines on 26 November 1930, on the very same day the hero of our story, Leonardo Ganci, was born. November month is winter in Europe; our Leonardo started his life in Italy, on the island, Sicily, in a little village, Castellammare del Golfo.
Locally, the Ganci family celebrated the birth of the second son, Leonardo Ganci, the hero of this story. In the early hours of the morning, Leonardo Ganci (lovingly called Nanà by family and friends) breathed for the first time. This little baby boy, held the future of this humble family came into life.
Autumn was drawing to a close as winter started making itself felt. Looks like it will be a cold winter thinks Antonino, as he unpacked his cart, alongside the olive oil and wine that he had accumulated during the months. He rubbed the coins in his pocket as he hears the screams of his beloved wife, Antonina, upstairs as she gives birth to their second child. As was the custom, the mid-wives assisted to give birth at home.
In the early hours of the morning on 26 November 1930, Leonardo Ganci was born. As Leonardo grew older, so this little family grew in numbers. Five girls were born. Caterina, Soccorsa, Angelica, Antonina and Angela.
Antonina, Leonardo’s mother, was also a happy woman. She was proud of her growing large family, and felt quite rich financially, as they owned an average size house and a small holding (campagna) with all sorts of fruits producing enough for their family and friends in Castellamare del Golfo. She was often referred to as “la ricca” The Rich One. As they always had enough food. Her heart was as big as her generosity; she always helped the less fortunate, even though they envied her.
(Extracts from a self-published book)
Italy (1930 – 1940)
Haile Selassie is crowned Emperor / "King of Kings of Ethiopia" at Addis Ababa's Cathedral of St. George in a lavish ceremony attended by royals and dignitaries from all over the world.
Flashed the news headlines on 26 November 1930, on the very same day the hero of our story, Leonardo Ganci, was born. November month is winter in Europe; our Leonardo started his life in Italy, on the island, Sicily, in a little village, Castellammare del Golfo.
Locally, the Ganci family celebrated the birth of the second son, Leonardo Ganci, the hero of this story. In the early hours of the morning, Leonardo Ganci (lovingly called Nanà by family and friends) breathed for the first time. This little baby boy, held the future of this humble family came into life.
Autumn was drawing to a close as winter started making itself felt. Looks like it will be a cold winter thinks Antonino, as he unpacked his cart, alongside the olive oil and wine that he had accumulated during the months. He rubbed the coins in his pocket as he hears the screams of his beloved wife, Antonina, upstairs as she gives birth to their second child. As was the custom, the mid-wives assisted to give birth at home.
In the early hours of the morning on 26 November 1930, Leonardo Ganci was born. As Leonardo grew older, so this little family grew in numbers. Five girls were born. Caterina, Soccorsa, Angelica, Antonina and Angela.
Antonina, Leonardo’s mother, was also a happy woman. She was proud of her growing large family, and felt quite rich financially, as they owned an average size house and a small holding (campagna) with all sorts of fruits producing enough for their family and friends in Castellamare del Golfo. She was often referred to as “la ricca” The Rich One. As they always had enough food. Her heart was as big as her generosity; she always helped the less fortunate, even though they envied her.
Castellamare Del Golfo, the village where my parent were born. Photo taken in the 1930's
Antonina’s strong personality and character including her ability to work hard and save is what Leonardo inherited from his mother.
Filippo (his older brother) and Leonardo were very close and spend many happy hours together. They shared everything, and often had competitions as to who could bring home more food, clothing or money. They worked hard alongside their father. This taught them to become good at bartering. As to be expected with young boys two years apart, rivalry between the two brothers was high, and Mom would shout and Dad would scold.
The seven children all slept in the loft – one large room, with a makeshift curtain giving the parents some privacy. Downstairs, in the stable, the horse would sleep, alongside the carts and various equipment.
Space was limited, the two boys would share a straw bed, as was the custom of the time. There was not much space for them to have two separate beds, they would take the back of their hands to ‘cut’ and mark the centre of the bed, ensuring that each had their own space. Naturally this created commotion at night, as one would kick or place an arm over to the other side. Rivalry would occur much to the distress of their parents and sisters.
The Second World War loomed ahead. There was talk of war, prison and being tortured for not obeying the law. One of the various rumours was that if you did not comply, you could be an exchange prisoner and the Nazis produced soap from your body and your children and wife tortured in unspeakable ways. They lived for many years with these rumours and harsh environment.
The British had undertaken bombing raids over Sicily since late 1942 but on 10 July 1943 British-Canadian-American invasion of Sicily began. Medical attention and hygiene was non-existent. The little water there was came from nearby rivers. Luckily July is summer in Sicily, making it easy to sleep under the stars. Conditions were hard and difficult. The blinding dust from the army vehicles was a scene often witnessed towards the end of July 1943.
The village had lived in terror for so long, they now saw these soldiers as heroes. The soldiers had come to rescue them and remove the Nazi threat they had believed for so long. The soldiers were warmly embraced by the Sicilian population.
As money was very scares, barter was the custom to purchase much required goods. The most common exchange was bully beef for eggs, although it was not unknown for a fair amount of black marketing to take place with lira (Italian currency) changing hands for cigarettes or clothes.
Filippo (his older brother) and Leonardo were very close and spend many happy hours together. They shared everything, and often had competitions as to who could bring home more food, clothing or money. They worked hard alongside their father. This taught them to become good at bartering. As to be expected with young boys two years apart, rivalry between the two brothers was high, and Mom would shout and Dad would scold.
The seven children all slept in the loft – one large room, with a makeshift curtain giving the parents some privacy. Downstairs, in the stable, the horse would sleep, alongside the carts and various equipment.
Space was limited, the two boys would share a straw bed, as was the custom of the time. There was not much space for them to have two separate beds, they would take the back of their hands to ‘cut’ and mark the centre of the bed, ensuring that each had their own space. Naturally this created commotion at night, as one would kick or place an arm over to the other side. Rivalry would occur much to the distress of their parents and sisters.
The Second World War loomed ahead. There was talk of war, prison and being tortured for not obeying the law. One of the various rumours was that if you did not comply, you could be an exchange prisoner and the Nazis produced soap from your body and your children and wife tortured in unspeakable ways. They lived for many years with these rumours and harsh environment.
The British had undertaken bombing raids over Sicily since late 1942 but on 10 July 1943 British-Canadian-American invasion of Sicily began. Medical attention and hygiene was non-existent. The little water there was came from nearby rivers. Luckily July is summer in Sicily, making it easy to sleep under the stars. Conditions were hard and difficult. The blinding dust from the army vehicles was a scene often witnessed towards the end of July 1943.
The village had lived in terror for so long, they now saw these soldiers as heroes. The soldiers had come to rescue them and remove the Nazi threat they had believed for so long. The soldiers were warmly embraced by the Sicilian population.
As money was very scares, barter was the custom to purchase much required goods. The most common exchange was bully beef for eggs, although it was not unknown for a fair amount of black marketing to take place with lira (Italian currency) changing hands for cigarettes or clothes.
Sicily is well known for the decorative horse and cart (I discovered that my grand father did decorate his before the wars)
There was rumour of Mussolini being dead. Nobody was sure. Newspapers, radio and television were unheard of. News travelled via word of mouth. Hence rumours were wild. Everyone had a different story to tell.
The Italians and German soldiers were retreating. The Ganci Family moved to their small holding (campanga) in the country, whilst their village was being bombarded. Leonardo and his best friend, Guiseppe Ancona were sitting on the hill planning their future. They were impressed with what they saw of the new soldiers, with the abundance they seemed to be able to access. Sweets and chocolates seemed to be plentiful, though it never filled an empty stomach. Food was still very much in demand as the fields were bombed and going fishing was not an option as the army had taken over the harbour.
Leonardo and Guiseppe Ancona heard that the German army had abandon their camp and left everything behind. These two young boys, were very excited, and decided to go there and take the horses that the soldiers had left behind. This they knew would be helpful, as they could do much with horses.
They decided to take a day off their usual work, scavenging for food and walked to the army camp to take possession of the horses they felt the soldiers had left behind. They walked excitedly and full of inspiration, a whole day’s walk to the abandon army camp. They did not feel the distance. They were meant to be with their family looking for food, but felt they had hit a jackpot, and were prepared to bring home some loot from the abandoned army camp.
Their disappointment was high, when they arrived only to discover that the soldiers had taken the horses with them and that there was nothing left in the camp, no blankets, no food, no nothing. They had wasted a whole day walking and no reward.
This was a pivotal moment in Leonardo Ganci’s life; he had just learnt an important lesson. One that he was not going to forget – ever. He could not accept the fact that he had wasted a whole day with no reward, and hence he promised himself, that he would look ahead before embarking on another worthless mission. This taught him to think ahead – a lesson that helped him in years to come.
This is but a small section of chapter 1
The Italians and German soldiers were retreating. The Ganci Family moved to their small holding (campanga) in the country, whilst their village was being bombarded. Leonardo and his best friend, Guiseppe Ancona were sitting on the hill planning their future. They were impressed with what they saw of the new soldiers, with the abundance they seemed to be able to access. Sweets and chocolates seemed to be plentiful, though it never filled an empty stomach. Food was still very much in demand as the fields were bombed and going fishing was not an option as the army had taken over the harbour.
Leonardo and Guiseppe Ancona heard that the German army had abandon their camp and left everything behind. These two young boys, were very excited, and decided to go there and take the horses that the soldiers had left behind. This they knew would be helpful, as they could do much with horses.
They decided to take a day off their usual work, scavenging for food and walked to the army camp to take possession of the horses they felt the soldiers had left behind. They walked excitedly and full of inspiration, a whole day’s walk to the abandon army camp. They did not feel the distance. They were meant to be with their family looking for food, but felt they had hit a jackpot, and were prepared to bring home some loot from the abandoned army camp.
Their disappointment was high, when they arrived only to discover that the soldiers had taken the horses with them and that there was nothing left in the camp, no blankets, no food, no nothing. They had wasted a whole day walking and no reward.
This was a pivotal moment in Leonardo Ganci’s life; he had just learnt an important lesson. One that he was not going to forget – ever. He could not accept the fact that he had wasted a whole day with no reward, and hence he promised himself, that he would look ahead before embarking on another worthless mission. This taught him to think ahead – a lesson that helped him in years to come.
This is but a small section of chapter 1
