The US military brought a new birthday cake to one Italian woman 77 years after the American soldiers who fought in the village of this woman ate the gateau that her mom had made for her 13th birthday.
Sgt. Peter Wallis and Col. Matthew Gomlak presented the icing-covered cake with fresh fruit topping to Meri Mion in a ceremony that took place on April 29th, shortly before the lady’s 90th birthday.
This ceremony’s hosts were the Italian officials and it took place at Giardini Salvi, a park in the center of Vicenza, Italy.
The Case of the Stolen Cake
Back in 1945, on April 28th, the US troops from the 88th Infantry Divison were fighting against the German soldiers in this northeastern city in Italy.
Mion was a teen when the battle moved to her village, San Pietro. With the German soldiers opening fire near her farm, she hid with her mom in their attic.
The next morning when they woke up, they realized that the troops had taken her birthday cake that was on the window sill.
At least 19 troops of the US were injured or killed in this battle and several US tanks were destroyed. The locals in Vicenza later forged ties with the US military and brought bread and wine to greet the soldiers.
The military staff worked with the US National Archives to find vintage combat films and images from the fighting that had happened in the city.
The footage was presented at the ceremony and is a documentation of the friendship between the Vicenza residents and the US army that happened shortly after the fighting ended.
A Friendship that Continues to this Day, Explain the Soldiers
According to Gomlak, a commander of the US Army Garrison in Italy, the warm welcome by the locals of Vicenza continues to this day.
He added that Mion was looking forward to her 13th birthday, but she got disappointed when the soldiers took off with the cake.
Wallis says that it felt so great presenting her with the cake. The lady wiped the tears from her eyes as hundreds of onlookers, including residents, police members, US and Italian soldiers, and veterans watched this heartwarming exchange.
Mion added that she and her family will eat the cake together and recall this amazing day that she will remember forever!
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