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World Refugee Day was once again an occasion for celebration and reflection at Villa Pettini, the facility in Montevarchi (AR) where the John Paul II Foundation provides shelter and integration for families of asylum seekers.

As is now customary, on the occasion of the Day, the Foundation organized a fundraising dinner that becomes a time of sharing with guests, operators, and friends in which the protagonists are the life stories that are encountered in the shelter projects.

The theme chosen for the 2025 edition was childhood, with testimonies from refugee families: some teenage guests of the shelter shared their stories, bringing direct, emotional and real accounts of their journey.

Children and young people put on a play of Sepulveda's famous story "The Story of the Little Gull and the Cat Who Taught Her to Fly." Through drama therapy, children from migrant families are encouraged to draw out their emotions and process the traumas of their experience.

With Angelo, a teacher and actor from theMasaccio Cultural Association, along with workers from the John Paul II Foundation, they are involved in independent activities together with other local children, thus also fostering integration, knowledge, and friendship.

The first audience for this special little troupe had been the elderly guests ofASP Masaccio in San Giovanni Valdarno at Carnival. This resulted in a beautiful and valuable friendship between grandparents and children, so much so that the guests of the Rsa decided to work alongside the little actors and the operators of the reception center in making costumes for the stage. The meeting of generations and support for each other thus becomes welcome and art.

The evening was attended by Damiano Bettoni, newly appointed president of the John Paul II Foundation, and board member with responsibility for hospitality Pino Gulia: it was the first public outing for the new board, which took office June 19.
Also doing the "honors" was Stefano Ermini, head of the entire hospitality area of the John Paul II Foundation.

There are many events in the event, such as the inauguration of the "Ludomondo" space, an area of Punto Famiglia Villa Pettini, which collaborates with the Foundation for the reception, dedicated to play and socialization open to all minors, both residents of the centers and of the territory.

The dinner was prepared by Qoelet, a social enterprise that promotes the socioeconomic inclusion of socially marginalized people and of which the John Paul II Foundation is a partner.

"The initiative promoted by the John Paul II Foundation on the occasion of World Refugee Day," stresses Pino Gulia, "takes on a triple significance. First, it is part of the numerous actions that, in adherence to the United Nations, are being promoted around the world today to give visibility to the dramatic condition of millions of people forced to leave their countries because of wars, violence, persecution and serious violations of human rights. Far from their homeland, their loved ones and everything they knew, they seek protection in places that are often completely unknown. It is to them that our gaze goes, and it is to the public that our appeal is addressed: to stop, to listen to their stories, to recognize the paths of integration that have been put in place, to appreciate the strength with which they try to peacefully take back their lives in their new reality."

"This year," the newly appointed CDA board member continues, "the focus is on childhood, because children are the most fragile and silent victims of conflict and forced migration. They often do not fully understand what is happening and, along the path to safety, can become prey to those who exploit their vulnerability, even in the presence of their families. They have been denied childhood: providing a safe, serene space where they can bring out fears and hopes is the first fundamental step for their well-being today, but also for when they are young and adults."

Finally, Gulia further recalls, "next to the children are the families, those of the refugees and those of the volunteers, the participants in this initiative and the community. This 'togetherness,' even if with some initial difficulties, over time generates mutual trust, confidence, integration. It is in these bonds that new avenues are opened for the defense and practice of human rights, toward an open and inclusive society. And it is precisely this, let me say, the political objective of the John Paul II Foundation."

Montevarchi (AR), June 21, 2025