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Les Enfants et Amis AbadiPreserving the memory of Odette and Moussa Abadi and keeping alive the memory of the Shoah

A special day

September 2, 2019

A special day

August 17, 2019 in Rigaud (Alpes-Maritimes)

One day, finally becoming aware of the role played by my parents’ friends, Jeanne and Jean Rous, in Nice on November 8, 1943, I decided to apply for the Medal of the Righteous for them.

On August 17, because the 16th was the day of the Liberation, not of Freedom

One day, Mr Pallanca, a resident of Puget-Théniers who wanted to engage pupils with the issue of the Shoah, decided, with the help of two mayors of the local community of communes – the Mayor of Touët-sur-Var (Mr Roger Ciais) and the Mayor of Rigaud (Mr Jean-Marc Fonseca) – to organise a day to mark the 75th anniversary of the Liberation. “On August 17, because the 16th was the day of the Liberation, not of Freedom.” For the occasion, a temporary Avenue of the Righteous was created in Rigaud, and movable panels intended to go into schools were presented. These Righteous, nine in number – including Mr and Mrs Rous, which explains my presence that day – all come from the region. I had the honour of meeting a son and grandson of Righteous, whose grandparents, Mr and Mrs Béraud, and their daughter Georgette Héron, then a very young girl, hid six Jewish people in Bontes, a little hamlet near Annot.

The sun was dazzling over the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence that Saturday in Rigaud, transformed into a vast stage. Imagine a little square like so many in our villages, surrounded by the solemnity of the mountains, people in their Sunday best. The emotion was palpable, as if suddenly the years had been abolished and we found ourselves back in 1944. Military jeeps, the black Citroën bearing huge “FFI” letters on its doors, the American Navy band in brilliant white, GIs in impeccable uniforms, the Foreign Legion, the priest in his black cassock, the Maquisards with a nurse in period dress, the standard-bearers…. And the Consul General of the United States, Mr Simon R. Hankinson, and Mrs Anna Bulatova, Vice-Consul of the Russian Federation, gave the gathering all the importance and solemnity of the moment. But that is not all, and like a list by Prévert, I must also mention Mr Jacques David, Mayor of Saint-Léger, the veterans’ association of the Alpes-Maritimes, the Souvenir Français association, the standard-bearers representing the United Kingdom, the France–United States association and the association Infos Des Vallées…

After the inauguration of the Avenue of the Righteous, the procession formed and made its way to the war memorial, where wreaths were laid. Then came the various speeches and exchanges with the participants, including Mr Panicacci, President of the Museum of the Resistance in Nice, whom I had met during the filming of the documentary on the Marcel network.

The atmosphere seemed lighter: an aperitif… a few glasses, conversation flowed, the testimonies of veterans were listened to with respect and eagerness… the meal… then the dance with the musette songs that rocked my youth…. Good God, am I already part of History????

To close, let us name the Righteous and the hiding places that made this rescue possible:

Andrée Poch-Karsenti