Army veteran, 81, serenades wife at hospital window in Italy due to Covid rules
An 81-year-old Italian man who serenaded his wife from beneath her hospital window said he was simply following his heart.
Stefano Bozzini, who was unable to visit his wife, Carla, in hospital due to Covid-19 restrictions, instead played songs on his accordion that have defined their love.
The romantic gesture took place on Sunday morning in the courtyard of the hospital in Castel San Giovanni, a town in the northern Emilia-Romagna region, and was captured in a widely-shared video.
“I did it for Carla – to show her how much I love her and to thank her for all she has given me,” Bozzini said. “I wasn’t able to see her in hospital and so went to the courtyard with the accordion – my heart told me to go. After she heard the music she looked out of the window, so at least I got to see her.”
The first song he played was Spanish Eyes by Engelbert Humperdinck.
“She was so in love with that song, I play it all the time at home,” he said. “I played others that everyone knows, one song after the other, I didn’t stop. A lot of the sick people in the hospital were looking out of their windows.”
Carla, 74, was discharged on Monday after spending 10 days in hospital as medics carried out tests for suspected cancer. The hospital in Castel San Giovanni doesn’t treat Covid-19 patients but visitors are banned in case they bring the virus in.
“They offered to bring her home in an ambulance. I said no, I’m coming to get her straightaway. We’re by each other’s side all the time. The illness she has is very serious and will now need treatment in a specialist hospital.”
Bozzini, a retired member of the Italian army’s Alpini mountain infantry, wore a Cappello Alpino, a distinctive green hat with a raven feather on the side that forms part of the uniform, while serenading Carla. He was nicknamed “Gianni Morandi”, after the Italian singer, by fellow troops because he never stopped playing the accordion.
“I love music, and when I play the accordion it brings fun and happiness everywhere,” he said. “What is happening in the world right now is so horrible we need music to help lift the spirits.”
The couple met when they were in their 20s and have been married for 47 years. They have three children, but lost their youngest to cancer at the age of 25.
Castel San Giovanni, where the couple have lived all their lives, is close to the border of Lombardy, the region worst hit by the coronavirus.
“We try and stay home as much as possible to not risk getting Covid,” said Bozzini. “But it is important to look with the eyes and heart, and to try and help others as much as possible.”