Pollo Giuseppe

Pollo, Giuseppe Lieutenant Giuseppe Pollo was the commander of the naval station of the Guardia di Finanza (economic police) in Venice. In 1943, Pollo and his soldiers joined the resistance movement and took part in many underground activities against the Nazi occupation. Pollo saved several Jews during the war. He helped Aldo Temin and his nephew Adolfo Hanau during the anti-racial persecutions by hiding them for several months after they survived the massacre at Ferrara on November 15, 1943. During that event, five Jews were shot in the streets, amongst them Temin’s father and uncle. Mirella Temin, Aldo’s daughter, who was eight years old at the time, later testified to the accuracy of Aldo’s testimony. During the months they were in hiding, Pollo brought Temin and Hanau vital information that he gathered at the Venice police station. The commissioner of the station's political department recalled that Pollo would often come to him to enquire about Jewish deportations or arrests, in order that he could warn them in advance. Clara Fontanella from Venice told Yad Vashem that Pollo helped her and her mother by bringing them important and useful information. He also hid her mother every time she was in danger, escorting her in person to a safe place. Lieutenant Pollo was arrested several times during the war due to his anti-Nazi activity, yet continued to help Jewish residents in need. He died in Venice in 1988. On November 8, 2006, Yad Vashem recognized Giuseppe Pollo as Righteous Among the Nations.