Gino Boncristiano and his grandchildren
I was born in Puglia, Italy, on January 20, 1938,
during the Second World War. I grew up in a family of seven children. My father
was a soldier and my mother did household chores in neighbours’ houses. We were
poor and feeding ourselves everyday was quite difficult. As a result, as soon
as we were old enough, we had to know how to get by in life and find food on
our own.
When I was thirteen, having already lived through many difficult
moments, I thought about leaving Italy. To emigrate to France, I needed my
parents’ permission but they didn’t want to give it to me. In fact, they were
frightened to let their son flee the country, alone, as I didn’t speak French
and hadn’t had any professional experience yet. I was very independent-minded, and
I thought going abroad was my only way to succeed. Despite my parents’ refusal,
I sent my file to the Emigration Office. Six years later, the Emigration Office sent me
back my file with a positive answer. Legally, I wasn’t yet considered an adult
and I had to make my parents sign false documents to obtain their signature…
I left my city in 1958, penniless. When I arrived in
Milan, the Emigration Office tested my abilities as a plasterer-painter to decide where I
could be sent. They gave me 200 Francs and I obtained an employment contract
in Baye, Nièvre, France. When I arrived in France, I became homesick because it
was -15°C, it was snowing and I was living in the countryside. I didn’t have any choice but to force myself to learn French since I was the only Italian living there. My
living conditions were deplorable; I lived in a shed without any heating.
Moreover, the windows were broken and my boss “forgot” to pick me up most of
the time from construction sites. I was forced to respect the contract’s conditions
because the Emigration Office regularly wanted reports about immigrants’ behaviour...
Fifteen months later, I found another job in Corbigny,
a village near Baye. I saw my future wife,
Annie, for the first time. Her mother invited me to dinner a few days later. I was so happy; it
was the first time since I had arrived in France that I felt accepted and
loved. I married her in 1966 and have never let her go.
I was very involved in politics, and, at night, I put
up posters for Mitterrand. In 1961, there were many problems with the OAS terrorist
organization. All immigrants who took part in politics were sent back to their
native country. At that time, I was working for a high-ranking officer and told
him that I didn’t have French nationality. I was worried about being forced to
move back to Italy. Eight days later, I officially became French thanks to this
man.
In 1964, I decided to build my own house. To achieve
my dream, I bought a field at the top of
a hill. I created my building firm and, after that, I bought 8,000 square
meters around my house to create rentals. I built a house each time that my
employees couldn’t work in other construction sites because I had to pay them
each month. I named the hill “La Blanche Colline”.
Several years had passed since I had given any news to
my family and, one day, I saw my mother in Corbigny; she had come from Italy to take me back! I
still don’t know how she managed to find me to this day as she couldn't read. I think she did it
because, protective mother as she was, she needed to be sure of the happiness
of her son. When she saw I was happy and healthy, she accepted my decision to
stay in France. But now, I often call her to prove that she made the right
choice.
Now, after 58 years in France, I own a property which
is worth quite a bit; I’m proud of my rags-to-riches story because,
thanks to my willpower and my hard work, I have managed to fulfil my dream. I
am the father of two daughters, and the most loved and proudest grand-father of
three grandchildren. Each time I see their smiles it is the reward for my hard work and proves
to me that I have made the right choices despite the many difficulties I have
encountered.
Article by Chloé CORREIA
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