San Benedetto del Tronto - Our Little Houses
When we decided to capture the most beautiful moments from our "little houses," we knew there was only one way to do it fairly: let one of our young people choose what mattered. Simona took the photographs, and in doing so, she gave us a gift we want to share with you.
Simona's words
"I liked taking a picture of Don Gianni because he cares about all of us.
I also photographed Alessandra, my mother, and Robertina.
I like photographing people a lot because all the people care about me and they are beautiful.
I never took pictures before. Stefania taught me. They told me I did a really good job.
My mother has a black camera but it needs fixing.
My mother wants to take it to get fixed and after it's fixed my brother will teach me how to use it.
When I have my own camera I will photograph Emilio and Stefania because I like them."
Bari - A Faith and Light Camping Trip
Peace, calm, and joy traveled with us through all six days together. In the mornings we prayed in the shadow of tall pines. In the evenings we gathered after dinner to share briefly.
There were so many beautiful moments. Giuliana and Claudia dancing. The young people splashing in the pool at a nearby villa.
I was the only "dad"—my first camping trip ever!
I woke everyone in the morning with music. At night I was last to bed, after a quick walk around to check on things. Everything was silent and peaceful, so I could finally rest too.
I'd step into the boys' room and see Gigi's flushed face in the dim glow of the night light. He'd be waiting for me, eyes wide, smiling with joy. He'd turn over in bed and fall asleep, content.
That was his way of saying goodnight. For me it was the sign—the real, tangible sign—that the Lord was present among us. Always.
- Renato
Immacolata Concezione - Bari
Goodbye, Myriam
The Lord, in his infinite love, has called her to himself. But she remains close to you and intercedes for your journey of faith and hope.
(From the letter of Cardinal Martini, to the family of Myriam Cordeschi of Rome)
Into the World of Deafblind People
Fifth World Helen Keller Conference
The Fifth World Helen Keller Conference will take place in the Marche region from September 25-30, 1993, at the Hotel Santa Cristiana in Numana. The Conference will explore and discuss the factors that shape the "quality of life" for deafblind people, as proposed by the Italian Committee of Deafblind Persons.
Previous conferences were held in New York (1977), Hannover (1980), Bahrain (1983), and Stockholm (1989).
A key goal of the Conference is to ensure maximum participation of deafblind people, particularly those from developing nations.
Most of the speakers—from at least thirty countries—will be deafblind themselves. The Centro Filo d'Oro has taken on the organization and preparation of the Conference.
San Girolamo Community, Gubbio
Summer - Seven Different Days of Living Together
The CEAS (Center for Social Education) of the Capodarco Movement offers "Seven Days of Living Together in the Heart of Umbria" from late June through September at the San Girolamo Community in Gubbio.
We are a Christian-inspired community of welcome where people from different backgrounds—those with disabilities, those facing other hardships, and those in good health—live together, manage their own lives, and run a range of shared activities, rehabilitation programs, and cooperative work.
Like all Capodarco communities in Italy, we organize ourselves into residential groups, social centers for young people with severe needs, and work cooperatives in different regions.
We reach out to those who are seriously committed to exploring what sharing really means as a real answer to exclusion. This requires genuine dialogue and exchange of experience with everyone in the community.
During your week with us at San Girolamo—a beautiful fourteenth-century former convent surrounded by green, a kilometer from the historic center—you'll visit our family groups and work cooperatives. You'll experience a vacation unlike any other, one that puts you in contact with the real struggles and contradictions of many lives, most of them marked by suffering and exclusion, yet alive with a will to live that nothing has been able to extinguish.
And yes, you'll have the chance to visit the Franciscan places of Umbria too—Assisi, Todi, and more.