Poverty

There are families for whom even a 15 euro bill can become a problem. Families who cannot take their children to the dentist, families who have not bought chocolate for months. Specchio is close to all these families every day, donating thousands of grocery bags, financing a centre of volunteer dentists who offer free treatment and paying hundreds of bills thanks to the activity of the Specchio Point. A sort of emergency room in the centre of Turin, where every morning 12 requests for financial support are examined, for immediate help that is provided in a few days (the time required for the necessary checks).

An ad hoc project was also created for single mothers who come to the counter, Mothers & children in difficulty, which allowed us to adopt 100 of them, with their respective children. All are offered a job reintegration programme, with professional courses, parenting support courses, education in the use of money and information technology. A path towards autonomy, in short, because Specchio has always worked like this: it takes people by the hand, accompanies them.

Just like Sister Cristina does. She’s the soul of the Breakfast for the Poor, another project in Turin that offers breakfasts to 150 homeless people every morning. And then a hot shower, clean clothes, medical examinations and psychological support. Some manage to get up on their two feet again, find a job and a home. So they return to Sister Cristina to say thank you: they have in their eyes the same gratitude as the children to whom we give a holiday every summer. Children who have never seen the sea.