Noa - Achinoam Nini

Noa & Gil Dor in Trieste (Italy) supporting the children of the
"Fondazione Luchetta, Ota, D’Angelo, Hrovatin Onlus"

In a courtyard in East Mostar a troupe from the Italian national broadcasting corporation RAI is shooting a documentary in front of a shelter where tens of people are assembled; many of them are children and in fact the special documentary that the journalists from Trieste are making for the national television news channel TG1 is about children as war victims. Suddenly, a mortar shell is fired from the hills around the capital of Herzegovina; it hits the site, killing the three correspondents Marco Luchetta, Saša Ota e Dario D’Angelo, three information service operators, pay the highest price to report the atrocities of the war waging just outside our country. A few weeks later, the city of Trieste mourns another war victim, TV cameraman Miran Hrovatin, murdered in Somalia together with TG3 correspondent, Ilaria Alpi. Following the will of friends and colleagues a non-profit organization, the "Luchetta, Ota, D'Angelo, Hrovatin Fund for Children War Victims" was founded. A building owned by the Province of Trieste was refurbished and in 1998 it became a Reception Center for severely ill children and their families, mainly victims of the wars that are bloodstaining the world
© Text & Photos http://www.fondazioneluchetta.org

http://www.fondazioneluchetta.org/eventi/incontri/noa/noa-2006.asp

http://www.fondazioneluchetta.org/eventi/incontri/noa/noa-2006_en.asp

We have just come back from the III edition of the Luchetta prize: we were busy until late with our volunteers in the square, with the children in the house and with the organisation of the event.

© http://www.fondazioneluchetta.org

At a certain point Noa appeared, with her mother and her two children, Ayehli and Enea and the children ran to meet her, with the sound of her beautiful interpretation of “Shalom Shalom” which they had just heard still ringing in their ears.

Seeing the really warm reception she received, we managed to get her to make a big promise: “Tomorrow I will come to your house and I will sing for you, if you will dance for me!”

That night the children's sleep must have been a unique experience for all of them, because next morning they were all up bright and early, sleepy-eyed but already dressed in their best and ready to greet Noa and her family.

On the dot of nine we went to fetch Noa from her hotel and we took advantage of the fact that the winner of the Hrovatin prize for photography, Robert Knoth , was there to take a photo and have it autographed.

Then a dash to via Valussi and the children quivering with impatience.

Enea playing with Altina Thanks to the ability of the translators present, we were able to explain much of what we are doing, and the satisfaction for this was clear in the eyes of our new friends.

The lovely, warm reception was predictable but this time too the children did more than was expected, running to meet Noa, Ayehli, Enea, Pompeo Benincasa the manager and his staff and Gil Dor, who had come to personally accompany Noa singing the song she had dedicated to us, to the cry of “Shalom Shalom”!

Angela Buttiglione was another welcome guest: she is so fond of via Valussi, she shed her official role as President of the Hrovatin Prize jury and took part in the festivities with Noa and the members of the foundation.

While Ayehli went to play with his new friends, Noa talked at length with the members of the management, the volunteers and the mothers of via Valussi, asking opinions and expressing her agreement with our work, never getting tired of hearing about the simplest everyday things which we do to help the families who are staying with us.The affection shown to the children gave this meeting a particular significance, while no words in the world can express the feeling which everyone present felt.

Then the children claimed the song she had promised and the dancing began, with the fabulous voice of Noa singing and Gil playing the guitar: as he accompanied the singing he was pulling faces, causing much amusement to those present, especially the children.

The “especially”, however, is superfluous, because for a few moments, all dancing together, we adults, too, could enjoy the magical music of via Valussi, and we let ourselves go swaying to the music and clapping our hands to the rhythm.

We worked up an appetite singing and dancing and the mothers had made bread and cakes and Turkish coffee which everyone really appreciated.

It was also the occasion to have an exceptional patroness to inaugurate the swimming pool which our friends from the Motorbike Club and the traffic police had donated the day before.

When we asked Noa if she would do it, she was really enthusiastic, and even more gratified when she saw how many friends support our initiatives and have taken the children to their hearts.

Like all wonderful moments which are fleeting (even if she stayed with us two hours under the scorching sun) Noa had to leave because of her other engagements, but she gave us one last present: she had reserved the first row of seats for us at the evening concert in Piazza Unità, inviting all the children.

Then she said goodbye to the adults with a lovely sentence which will stay in our hearts for ever “God bless you for what you are doing and how you do it!”

In the afternoon we organized transport to take the children to Piazza Unità d'Italia for a little snack and then to the concert.

When she saw us, Noa's mother came to sit with us in the front row, and Ayehli was over the moon to meet his new friends from via Valussi again.

They never seemed to get tired, dancing, jumping and running on the parterre, drawing the attention of everyone present, when Noa dedicated her show to the Lucchetta Foundation and its children, who responded with joyful shouts to her greeting.

You can imagine the enthusiasm during one more performance of Shalom, to which our, by now, experienced dancers responded keenly, performing their well-rehearsed dance for everybody.

They never tired of listening to Noa's sweet voice, and we stayed right to the end of the concert.

Noa and her family came personally to say goodbye to us at the end of the concert and she wanted to pose with us for a last photograph which has recorded this wonderful meeting with the performer Noa, but also with the woman Noa.

A meeting which will undoubtedly stay in our hearts forever.

Special Thanks to the "Fondazione Luchetta, Ota, D’Angelo, Hrovatin Onlus".
© Text & Photos http://www.fondazioneluchetta.org

http://www.fondazioneluchetta.org/eventi/incontri/noa/noa-2006.asp

http://www.fondazioneluchetta.org/eventi/incontri/noa/noa-2006_en.asp