MESSINA (ITALPRESS) – A visit to Sicily for the first lady of the United States, Jill Jacobs Biden. At the Sigonella military base, President Joe Biden’s consort met with relatives of U.S. soldiers. As a second stop, she went to Gesso, a hamlet of Messina, the birthplace of her great-grandparents, Concetta Scaltrito and Gaetano Giacoppo. The latter had emigrated to the U.S. in 1856 and was joined by his wife in Hammonton, New Jersey, in 1889. Later their son Domenico anglicized the surname to Jacobs. In Gesso the fist lady was greeted by a cheering crowd and Italian and American flags. “Welcome to Gesso, Jill” and “We love You. You will always have a home here” the inscriptions on two banners hung on the balconies of St. Anthony Abbot Square, in front of the church of the same name.
“In the Gospel Jesus says that hilltop towns should shine. The light of Chalk still shines in me,” said Jill Biden, “More than 100 years ago my great-grandparents walked the streets of Chalk, talked with their neighbors, looked at the stars. In the rhythm of each day their lives were forged by Italian values, loyalty, hard work, and the belief that there is another place at the table. “Jill Biden during her visit to Gesso donated a European holly tree to the City of Messina.
“I hope this tree will remain strong for future generations, as a symbol of the roots and our bond,” the first lady said while addressing Messina Mayor Federico Basile.
– photo: sat/Italpress
(ITALPRESS).
