Launched in 2022 as an initiative to help last to live Christmas with serenity, one would never have imagined the success with which the editorial project of Christian family “A Christmas of Value” would have reached its third edition, with a donation of 63 thousand euros in 2024 and many companies capable of going beyond the strict logic of profit, in the name of what Pope Francis calls “integral ecology”.
The magazine’s initiative was created to offer food aid and meals to those in need and, for 2024, it wanted to tell the commitment of the Italian entrepreneurial fabric towards inclusion, educational poverty, equity, food waste and the protection of artistic heritage. In collaboration with the advertising agency PiemmeIndeed, ten Italian companies they found space on Christian familyto tell their stories and charitable activities that have been characterizing their style of doing business for years, demonstrating that entrepreneurial logic can find support and, indeed, enrich itself with social and humanitarian commitment to improve the world around us .
One way to telling the good, doing good: this initiative, which was joined by large companies from different sectors – from food to insurance and banking – saw 63 thousand euros donated for the project “A Meal a Day” conceived and conducted with seriousness and capillarity by the association Pope John XXIII Communityfounded in 1968 by Don Oreste Benzi – whose birth centenary is on 7 September – and which offers hospitality throughout Italy to people in various situations of social hardship, such as the new poor and homeless people.
«Our community is made up of people who, for 50 years, have shared their lives, homes and even the table every day with those in need.», explains the general manager of Papa Giovanni XXIII, Matteo Fadda. «The street continues to be an open-air dormitory. Added to the people who live on the streets, Italians and immigrants, is a slice of poverty made up of families or individuals who turn to us seeking help in many Italian cities, from north to south, and in the poorest countries in the world, especially now that global events have broken precarious balances and thrown many into desperation. It is important to know that we have people next to us who help us welcome and feed these people so that we can all build a table together where there is room for everyone. We are grateful to Famiglia Cristiana and to those who are joining this initiative, because they help us build that sense of community capable of finding answers and hope for those who have lost everything».
The companies that have joined our project are Autostrade per l’Italia, Intesa Sanpaolo, Generali Italia-Cattolica, Edison, Enel, Esselunga, Poste Italiane, Banco BPM, Mulino Caputo and Fondazione Grana Padano. These giants, each in their own sector, have implemented projects that aim to combine economic development and social well-being, making it clear that the value of a company is not only measured in terms of the balance sheet, but also in its positive impact on the community.
The large social responsibility projects described cover a large part of the social fabric of the whole of Italy, to show as much as possible the “good” that is achieved and, at the same time, offer help to the ever-increasing and diverse needs. Among the projects described we find “Amplia Academy” of Autostrade per l’Italia Groupa training project for carpenters dedicated to asylum seekers and created to provide work to refugees and satisfy the need for qualified workers in the construction world; A hand to those who support” Of Generali Italy – Cattolica, initiative created to promote social inclusion and cohesion projects; the project “Future” Of Intesa Sanpaoloto address the widespread problem of female educational poverty; “Good Idea – Good projects come from within” initiative supported by Edison and its employees to support children with disabilities, children in need of care and adolescents in difficulty; the new internal policy adopted by the group Enel is aimed at equity and acceptance in order to combat discrimination, with particular attention to parents, caregivers and people with disabilities.
Protagonists too Esselunga which has been collaborating with the Banco Alimentare e Pane Quotidiano Onlus Foundation for years; Italian post office which for the second year and together with its employees, supported the initiatives ofItalian Multiple Sclerosis Association; BPM desk who has set up projects for the right to education; Grana Padano ETS Foundation who with “intrecci”, a foundraising project, wish to contribute to the protection of the Italian artistic heritage and Caputo Mill which, through young talents, are working towards greater sustainability and attention to public spaces.
The aim of the initiative finds its origins in the founding values of Famiglia Cristiana: «Our newspaper has always been close to people in need through a series of activities and for many years it has been at the forefront in reporting on charity, goodness and initiatives of help towards others”, they explain Don Stefano Stimamiglio And Luciano RegoloDirector and co-director of Famiglia Cristiana. «We do it because we think that goodness can “infect”, act as a spur to a full life, and that even the harshest reality should not lead us to throw in the towel. “A Christmas of Value” is a concrete way to stay close to families who find themselves in difficult situations and which, also thanks to the “Companies of Value” and their sensitivity towards social emergencies, we can manage to pass with peace of mind the Christmas holidays to those who lend their hand to us.”
