The secret story of Sara, who was raised by Valentino: He paid for my books, school and car

2026-01-24 16:29:52Lifestyle SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
Valentine

A story that remained a secret for 30 years has now come to light in the Italian media after the passing of the famous designer Valentino, restoring once again his image as an elegant man, not only for his clothes, but above all in his soul. It is the story of Sarah Silvestri, a little girl (now a woman), who was saved by the designer who passed away on January 19.

It all began in February 1992 when Giovanni, Sara's father, walked into Valentino's atelier. "Giovanni is a very handsome man, speaks four languages, but shows signs of drug addiction," reports Leggo .

The stylist immediately wanted him in his company and offered him a job. However, he hesitated: "I have a little girl at home, I need a real job", and seemed more inclined to work at the company where he had given an interview a few hours earlier. "If they don't hire me, I'll come back to accept the offer". Giovanni did not have time to make the decision, because a little later he died of an overdose, despite having been sober for only a few months.

In an interview published in the Italian media, his daughter says: "They put hallucinogens in his beer precisely because he was cured." For his death, a doctor is ordered to pay compensation to the family. "He said my father was trash. A vagrant. A drug addict," Sarah recalls. The story appears in the newspapers, Valentino recognizes Giovanni's face and sends his secretaries to Tor Bella Monaca to look for the little girl.

And this is the beginning of a parallel life. The stylist regularly provides the little girl with food and clothes. Valentino becomes a "shadow father" for her, acting quietly and without fanfare.

"I didn't even know exactly how much he earned. I found out when I was older: he paid for my books, my school fees, even part of my first car," she says. Sarah and her grandmother didn't feel abandoned: "There was this person, so far away from us, who made us feel like we weren't alone. For me, it was like a spiritual support," Silvestri continues.

But between 2013 and 2015, Sarah is in New York, where she works various jobs to pay the rent. Valentino is in town for a fashion school event and she is finally determined to thank him. Giancarlo Giammetti, the designer's partner, offers her a collaboration with the fashion house, but she, like her father, refuses: "Thank you very much, but my dream is to become a lawyer. I studied for seven years for this," she explains.

A dream that has haunted her since she was little, when she saw her grandmother spit in the doctor's face in court: "I wanted to defend people like my dad, those who have no voice."

And Sara succeeded. She became an international lawyer and says she is proud of her life despite the hardships she has endured over the years.

"My father left his mark that afternoon in the studio without knowing it. He went there looking for a job and left me with a fortune," she says, bidding farewell to the man who was like a second father to her: "Today I mourn a man who embodied a high idea of ??elegance, not that of a suit, but that of the soul. A helping hand when no one is looking, the gentle push that allows you to walk the rest of the way alone."


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