Solidarity in motion. The Mobile Kitchen of Rome hits the road.

Thursday 17 February was almost a spring morning in Rome, with a clear sky above and the grandeur of St. Peter's Square in the background. We were there, in the company of the friends of Fondazione Progetto Arca, excited and proud to finally be able to inaugurate the new Mobile Kitchen that we helped to create.

The Mobile Kitchen of Rome is a food truck equipped with ovens, stoves and kettles: it is literally a canteen on wheels that moves through the streets of Rome to reach those in need right where they are. It will serve 450 hot dinners a week and distribute essentials such as sleeping bags and hygiene kits. The idea behind it is as simple as it is brilliant: don't wait for those in need to come to you, but go directly to where help is needed.

The event was an opportunity to see the volunteers and social workers of Progetto Arca in action: assisted by Leo Gassman, representing the Italian National Singers, they distributed numerous meals and hygiene kits to homeless people in the area, who were attracted by the presence of the Mobile Kitchen parked on the street. We thus experienced first-hand the truth of what Alberto Sinigallia, President of Progetto Arca, never tires of repeating: "A hot dish donated as a gesture of care is the most direct way to establish a relationship".

We returned home with a new awareness and a stronger determination.

The awareness of how urgent it is to provide a solution to a problem that the pandemic has only made even more acute: there are more than 7,000 homeless people in Rome alone, as well as all those who live in vulnerable conditions despite having a home.

The determination to continue with our solidarity campaign to collect hot meals in order to supply the cabinets of the Mobile Kitchen. We have decided to donate up to 5 meals for each copy of WebSite X5 sold. We are on track to reach the goal we set at 1,000: do you want to help us too?

#AiutaciAdAiutare – To find out what our friends at Fondazione Progetto Arca do every day, visit: https://www.progettoarca.org