"You are a piece of a welfare system that is made up of many faces in this Region." This is how Stefano Bonaccini, president of the Emilia-Romagna Region, began his speech during his visit to the ‘Casa Mia’ rest home in Forlì, on December 1, invited by the director of the facility.
"We have to keep the quality of services high because we are addressing people who need the quality not to decrease," said Bonaccini, after recalling that in rest homes "we do not fix dishwashers or cars, but we take care of people with their weaknesses and frailty, their feelings, their suffering, and many times, maybe hope."
“For this reason,” he continued, "you are a very important presence and, from what you told me, you are even thinking of increasing investments, of increasing the places available for people, which means for families."
After expressing his hope that in the West, and in Europe, we will fight against the birth rate, he concluded: "Thank you very much for what you do. We want to have optimal relations with everyone, in a society that instead of building walls needs to build bridges. So, regardless of the colour of your skin, the religion you profess, or the language you speak, we need harmony, friendship, [and] solidarity between people. Precisely in a society that we sometimes find a bit too unfriendly and selfish. Thank you very much for what you do.”
Stefano Paris, president of the Italian Adventist Union (UICCA)—which manages ‘Casa Mia’—welcomed the delegation, which also included the mayor of Forlì and the town councillor for welfare and the family.
"This is an important moment, part of a piece of our history," said Paris, recalling when, in 1999, ‘Casa Mia’ received a visit from Oscar Luigi Scalfaro, then president of the Italian Republic and good friend of Vincenzo Mazza, former president of the Italian Union.
"A history," Paris continued, "that we want to make available to the citizens because a church is such when it manages to enter the social fabric with the aim of doing good. And doing good today is not easy. The Adventist community has always focused on this element of good in society. And I want to thank, in a special way, the operators of this rest home, Oss, the nurses who are the hinge" of this structure.
He then concluded with a proverb from Solomon. "Iron is sharpened with iron, and so friendships are sharpened with human relations. So, if it is true that iron is sharpened with iron, our closeness as institutions, as people working for the common good, can also become a strength, especially at a difficult time like ours. Thank you again for your presence."
At the end of the tour of the facility, President Paris presented a plaque to the governor of Emilia-Romagna from the rest home, in recognition of his work and in memory of the visit.
"To President Bonaccini, for his great commitment, admirable dedication, and continuous challenges in his role as governor of Emilia-Romagna. The guests and employees of the 'Casa Mia' rest home," read the dedication.
To read the original article, go here.
Picture: former Italian Union President, pastor Vincenzo Mazza, with former President of the Italian Republic, Oscar Luigi Scalfaro (1999) - credit: Quirinale
