‘I offer 5 euros because the Vittoriale belongs to everyone’: the solidarity race after the storm

A few days after the launch of the initiative, the response from small donors has already made it possible to raise over 7,000 euros. A figure still far from the 5 million euros of estimated damages, but significant due to the origin of the offers: those contributing, at least for the moment, are above all citizens and small savers, people who have chosen to allocate part of their savings to the protection of an asset that they consider to be everyone’s. “The Vittoriale is everyone’s heritage and today we ask everyone to help us protect it and restore it intact for the future”, underlined Guerri when presenting the appeal. Now, however, attention is also turning to companies, from which the Foundation expects more substantial contributions in order to be able to face a particularly onerous recovery intervention.

The violent wave of bad weather on 17 July left deep wounds in the complex created by d’Annunzio. Among the most affected symbols is the Royal Ship Puglia, where the main mast was broken. Damage was also recorded to the Dancing Lake, to the historic balustrades and to the water drainage works. In the Vallette, 31 historic cypress trees were uprooted and landslides occurred. Fallen trees and instabilities also affected Villa Mirabella and the historic road system, while other ground movements affected the slopes of Casa Fraole and the bow area of ​​the Nave Puglia, where urgent consolidation interventions are necessary. The recovery program includes conservative restorations, static and hydrogeological consolidations, reconstruction of the damaged elements and restoration of the historical arboreal heritage. A complex job, necessary to restore the Vittoriale to its full integrity and allow visitors to continue to experience one of the most evocative places on Garda. “In this context, the five euros of the elderly Lombard take on a meaning that goes beyond their economic value. They are testimony to how even a small gesture can become part of a collective mobilization. The challenge now is to transform that solidarity into an increasingly broader response, capable of also involving the business world”, explained Guerri to Adnkronos. Because patronage is not just economic help, but “a concrete form of participation in the protection of culture”. And at the Vittoriale, after the storm, every contribution “can become a step towards returning to its beauty”, concludes Guerri. (by Paolo Martini)