Venerable Egidio Bullesi

Egidio Bullesi (24 August 1905 – 25 April 1929) - Egidije Bulešić in Croatian and in religious Ludovico - was an Italian Roman Catholic and a professed member from the Secular Franciscan Order. Bullesi lived as a refugee during World War I after his hometown was declared a war zone; he did his education in the cities he was forced to relocate to before being able to move back to his hometown following the end of the war. He became a naval officer after being drafted and following that became a draftsman in Pula. He was noted among his colleagues for his enthusiasm in addition to his pious nature. He entered Catholic Action and the Secular Franciscans in 1920 while also working for the Vincentian communities in his region. The beatification process for Bullesi launched in the 1970s in Trieste and he became titled as a Servant of God. The confirmation of his life of heroic virtue in 1997 allowed for Pope John Paul II to name him as Venerable. Egidio Bullesi was born in Pula on 24 August 1905 as the third of nine children to the poor Francesco Bullesi and Maria Diritti; he was baptized in the Pula Cathedral. His father worked in Pula as a naval technical designer. Two of his siblings were Maria and Giovanni. The outbreak of World War I in 1914 caused his hometown to be declared a war zone thus resulting in most of the population in the area being deemed refugees due to their internment in Rovinj and then in Graz in 1915. The Bullesis also moved to Szeghedin and Wagna during this period. He was forced to remain with his mother and siblings in relative quiet during this dangerous period while his father was separated from them continuing his work in Pula. He did his schooling from place to place during this period but made the effort to attend evening classes for further education due to disruptions in his studies. He managed to settle in Rovigo for some time.