Guido Venosta, the Second Life: AIRC – “The Azalea of Research” and “The Oranges of Health”

The existence of the Regional Committees and their close coordination with the central office—that is, with me—made possible the establishment, implementation, and success of two events of an entirely regional character: the first was entitled ‘L’Azalea della Ricerca’, and the second was called ‘Le Arance della Salute’. A national event of such exceptional importance had never before taken place in our country, which also testified to the members’ conviction—even those far away—of the soundness of the Association’s methods, and of the correctness, indeed transparency, of its everyday conduct.

In our case, we also tried to support Italian floriculturists, but we soon discovered that Italy’s production of azaleas was very limited. It was therefore necessary to resort to two countries—Belgium and the Netherlands—which together are able to supply large quantities simultaneously at the same time of year. As for the oranges, I confess that I was also inspired by reasons of national solidarity. Sicily, whose Committee was chaired by Arabella Salviati, had shown tremendous interest, and Sicilians embraced the Association’s cause with such enthusiasm that an extraordinarily high number of memberships was registered in the fundraising campaign for their region.

The explanation for Sicilian enthusiasm was also psychological—I played on that: Sicily considered itself cut off from the mainland. Engaging it with such a vital issue as cancer research proved decisive for every citizen who gradually became aware of it, and also for researchers—some extremely capable—who, however, had never felt they had a nearby point of reference or received any support until then. (…)”

Even today, every year, azaleas and oranges appear throughout Italy—even in town squares—announced by posters and advertisements with the now-familiar graphics, and invariably achieve great success, always reaffirming the hope that Guido Venosta envisioned and that remains a strong symbol of AIRC in every corner of the country.

Sources:
Albiate (MB), Villa San Valerio, Villa San Valerio Archives, Guido Venosta Archive, “Memoirs” (1997–1998), unpublished, pp. 42bis–46bis.