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Friday, March 31, 2023
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Gerardo Nardiello was born
on November 9, 1945, in Volturara Irpina, Province of Avellino,
Italy. At the age of 11 he travelled by ship to Venezuela. After
a few months, his father returned to Italy due to illness and Nardiello
was left in Venezuela alone. Gerardo worked as an auto mechanic
apprentice and was forced to sleep in the cars of different clients
in the garage at night, due to lack of funds. Some time later,
Nardiello developed a high fever and, since he had
no family members in Venezuela, he went to a nearby Italian family
to ask for help. Thankfully, they kept him at their home, nursed
him back to health, and notified |
P11997 - Gerardo Nardiello’s photo in 1980. Courtesy
of Gerardo and Luisa Nardiello
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Gerardo’s family in Italy to
inform them of the situation. Nardiello’s parents made arrangements
for him to return to Italy. As luck would have it, Gerardo returned
by the same ship, “The Venezuela”. |
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| At the time of his return Gerardo was fifteen years old. He worked
a very few months in Avellino, once more as a mechanic’s apprentice.
Two days before Easter, Nardiello received a telegram from his friend
in Germany, notifying him about a job opening at a dealership in
Lorach, Germany. He left and spent the next four years working in
various
dealerships. |
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During one of his father’s
visits to Germany, he mentioned that Gerardo had a good knowledge
of American cars (from his experience in Venezuela) and German cars
(from his experience in Lorach), but knew very little about Italian
cars.
In Switzerland across from the German border was Basel, where Gerardo
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P11996
- Twin Cam Motor, 2004. Courtesy of Gerardo and Luisa Nardiello |
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would go on the weekends, it is here that he discovered an
Alfa Romeo dealership. He asked if there were any job openings and,
to his |
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| surprise,
they hired him. Nardiello worked for them for four years, got
his mechanic’s license,
and was sent to Alfa Romeo school in Lugano, Switzerland.
During one of his vacations in Italy, Gerardo
met someone from Windsor, Ontario, who paved his curiousity about
Canada. He decided to immigrate to Canada and work as an auto
mechanic. Nardiello arrived in Windsor in 1968. With the help
of a kind gentleman (a barber) he started to work at Downtown
Motors on Wyandotte Street East. In 1969, Gerardo worked for
Winmar Motors on Erie Street East, where he worked on Alfa Romeos,
Citroen and Peugeot cars.
Also in 1969, Gerardo met his wife Luisa. They were married
in November 1971, at St. Angela Merici Church. Gerardo and Luisa
have three children.
In 1980, Gerardo Nardiello decided to open his own business.
Gerardo and Luisa purchased a small shop at 1393 Drouillard Road
and Twin Cam Motor was established.
To date, the Nardiello family is still in the business of repairing
Italian and German cars at the same location. |
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The
opinions and interpretations in this publication are those of the author
and do not necessarily reflect those of the Government of Canada. |
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