The Temple of Florence hosted the ceremony for the awarding of the Righteous among the Nations medal to the Paoli family: Giovanni and Alberta Paoli, Fiorenzo Paoli, Sira Macherelli and Franco Paoli.
A family from Campi di Bisenzio, Tuscany, which during the war did not turn the other way, when the Nazis began to round up Jews in Italian cities, risked their lives to save Ester Israel and his children Lucia and Samuele, welcoming them into their home for more than a year.
“At home there was an anti-fascist atmosphere: my grandfather Giovanni was a member of the Socialist Party, while my father was a partisan. So when the Israel family arrived in Campi Bisenzio from Trieste , thanks to the help of the Mugnaioni brothers, we welcomed them with open arms”.
“In Campi there was a remarkable network of solidarity, because the close people knew that my grandfather was hiding a Jewish family, but no one denounced them, indeed they were all willing to help them” said Shalom Fiorenza Paoli, daughter of Fiorenzo and Sira.
The situation experienced by the Paoli family and the Israel family created a strong bond, which was strengthened in the years after the war: before moving to Israel, Ester Israel returned to Campi Bisenzio to thank the Paoli for everything they had done for her and her children. Since then, the friendship between the two families has continued over time and has been handed down to the next generations.
The courage and risk taken by the Paoli family earned them the title of Righteous among the Nations; their names are added to the list of the seven hundred Italian Righteous recognized by Yad Vashem.
The ceremony for the delivery of the medal of Righteous among the Nations to the Paoli family took place at the Synagogue of Florence, in the presence of the Ambassador of Israel in Italy Dror Eydar, who read the motivation for the recognition and the community institutions, including the Vice President of the Jewish Community of Florence Brett Lalonde, Chief Rabbi Gadi Piperno, Sara Funaro, Councilor of the Municipality of Florence, Sara Cividalli, Councilor of the Union of Italian Jewish Communities, the historian Giovanni Bacci, author of a book on Jews in Campi Bisenzio , Fiorenza Paoli, who told her testimony and read that of Ester Sallonichio, daughter of Lucia Israel, Giampaolo Paoli and Silvana Paoli, who collected the medal of Giovanni, Alberta and Franco.
