Primetta Giacopini lived a life of adventure: She fell in love with a World War II fighter pilot, escaped Italy during the war, built a life for herself in Connecticut.
Then this month, at age 105, her life ended the way it began: in a pandemic. apne.ws/Hy919NL
Then this month, at age 105, her life ended the way it began: in a pandemic. apne.ws/Hy919NL
When Giacopini was two years old and living in Connecticut, her mother died of the flu. It was 1918, and the flu pandemic would go on to kill about 675,000 Americans. apne.ws/ClxgV8s 
Sent to her ancestral homeland of Italy after her mother’s death, Giacopini eventually fell in love with a fighter pilot who then died in the war. She left Italy after being warned that Americans could be targeted by Mussolini. apne.ws/F5pG6w1
She spent the rest of her life in Connecticut and California, where she became a fierce advocate for her daughter, who was born with spina bifida. apne.ws/HrCY3OU
Despite being vaccinated, Giacopini caught COVID-19 earlier this month at age 105. Had she not caught the coronavirus, “I think my mother would have been around quite a bit longer,” said her daughter, Dorene Giacopini. “She was a fighter.” apne.ws/2JRJWAZ
The U.S. death toll from the Spanish flu pandemic was eclipsed this month by the number of Americans killed by the coronavirus.
At a time when the world had one-quarter of the population it does now, the flu pandemic killed 50 million people globally. apne.ws/F9i6Juz
At a time when the world had one-quarter of the population it does now, the flu pandemic killed 50 million people globally. apne.ws/F9i6Juz
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
