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Claudia, Duncan, John Simkins, Katie Simkins
To prepare for hiking the
Freedom Trails, we spent time in the conservation areas around Toronto on the
Niagara Escarpment. We bought new collapsible hiking poles and special wicking
shirts and socks. Though neither of us likes wearing hats, we were suitably
equipped with the latest models. We carried two litres of water each plus a
day’s ration of granola bars from our local Costco. It’s a good thing we
brought them because at times my blood sugar dropped and I needed a boost from
the glucose to get up the next hill.
Wreath Laying Ceremony
Monte San Martino Wreath
Wording on Wreath
Giuseppe
Millozzi did an able job of leading our first day walk. He is the son of
the Italian administrator of the San Martino Trust, Antonio Milozzi, who received
an honorary MBE (Member of the British Empire) for his work of the last twenty
years in Italy on behalf of the Monte San Martino Trust in the UK. After a
formal wreath laying ceremony at the war memorial in Servigliano, he led us
along an overgrown trail along the Tenna River, stopping to recreate the
experiences of some of the Allied soldiers seventy years before. He explained
that this was the place they came in the evenings to exchange information about
the progress of the war. He called it the “bush telegraph”. He asked us
to imagine what it was like for them especially during that harsh winter of
’43-44 with the snow up over their inadequate footwear. I felt quite
moved for the first time as I thought of the fear and discomfort experienced by
all the escapees, but especially my dad. He was only 26 years old and had
endured so much in the past months. How relieved he must have felt leaving the
camp, but how frightened also. What thoughts must have been running through his
head when he left the camp at 22:22 (10:22 p.m.) – the time quoted by Giuseppe
when the men fled into the dark night of Sept. 14, 1943? In reading In Combat
Unarmed, a memoir, by Keith Killby, I am quite sure that my dad was one of
the first to escape. He described shots being fired over his head and this is
verified in the book. I know my dad felt they were shooting at him, even though they probably were
not.
Fascist Slogan Still Visible
It was explained that the
soldiers tended to avoid the larger more prosperous looking farms, because
generally the wealthier villagers, supported the fascists. The sign’s
presence indicates this was the farm of a fascist supporter though it was quite
modest. Giuseppe explained that when the Italians surrendered to the Allies on
Sept. 9, 1943, there was much confusion in the country. Initially many of the
impoverished country people (poverino), most of whom did not support the
fascists, were hoping the war would be over for them. However this was
the beginning of a civil war in Italy that lasted until the end of the war for
Italians in April 1945. These dark years featured the Nazi occupation, the
rebirth of the fascist party under Pietro Badoglio and the anti-fascists and the
fascists battling each other to the death. The country people were caught in
the middle of the fray and suffered greatly. Because of their humanity my dad
and many others survived.
During the course of our
walks we heard stories and read plaques about the murders that took place in
the villages and countryside. Of course innocent people suffered and
died, and that is one of the reasons we are here - to remember and be thankful
that that terrible episode in their history is over.
Halfway up the road to Monte San Martino, friends of
Giuseppe welcomed us to their farm with refreshing drinks of Elderflower
cordial, mixed berry tea, water and wine.
Paula (photo left) and Marino Marchese (far right)are shepherds with a small organic cheese making
facility. We enjoyed canapés of ricotta and pecorino topped with various condiments.
We found out the next morning that the Concetta and Jimmy, our hosts, get most
of their cheese from this couple. We
were most grateful for their warm welcome and good wishes to send us on our
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The sun was beating on the
blacktop road up to the village and all of us were feeling the heat and looking
beaten. We paused a few times to wait for stragglers and dragged into Monte San
Martino by 13:30 (1:30 pm) for another wreath laying ceremony followed by a
hearty lunch put on by the mayor. We had pasta, salami, cheese, wine,
water and delicious cookies. We sat with John, Katie, Letitia Blake , secretary
of MSMT, Joe Linehan from ELMS, and Anne and David. Duncan and I worked
the crowd, looking for a ride back from Monte San Martino and were
relieved that Anne and David readily agreed to take us back to our car in
Servigliano. We squished in with Sir Nicholas Young, Senior British
Officer from MSMT and his wife Helen. While chatting the next day, we
discovered we were both in the same field. Helen is a Speech Language
Pathologist and has spent much of her career working with students with
communication difficulties and dyslexia. Initially I was intimidated by
“Nick’s” title and the fact that he is CEO of the British Red Cross, but he
couldn’t be a more down to earth fellow.
He shared the story of his father, who fled from Fontanellato prison camp along with a New Zealander assisted by two Jewish people who led them through minefields to Switzerland. Unfortunately Allied soldiers mistakenly killed the Jewish helpers and wounded the New Zealander. Years later, Nicholas was able to connect with the daughter of the Jewish couple. He also met the son of others who provided refuge to his father. The fellow spoke of his childhood memories balancing on the knee of Nicholas’s father, who gave him peppermints to keep him quiet to avoid revealing their presence to the enemy. Nicholas said that in later years his father always had a packet of peppermints in his pocket. These are the personal anecdotes that bring the wartime experience to life.
We drove back to our hotel and after refreshing showers, collapsed on the bed of our darkened room for a siesta since last night was too short, and we were still recovering from jet lag. To my relief I had no new blisters after hiking 12 km.
That night we met other guests at the hotel for Prosecco in the garden before enjoying the first of many of Concetta’s delicious meals: appetizer, pasta, main course, dessert with wines to match each course. We won’t lose any weight in spite of all the walking in the extreme temperatures.
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