Every day, educators Annachiara and Lucia go to the homes of the most fragile families in our area to help mothers and fathers who have recently become parents and are facing difficulties.
Not all families have the same story or are facing the same problems, so for several years, the Valter Baldaccini Foundation’s has been running the “With the families” project and in all cases, we have the same goal: to guarantee all boys and girls the best possible start.
In fact, what happens in the first thousand days of life for each of us influences and determines who we will be, so growing up in a difficult context can have consequences that will forever mark the future of a newborn child.
“With Families” has accompanied and supported many boys and girls and their parents since 2019 and is carried out in synergy with the Consultorio Subasio in Foligno and the La Tenda cooperative.
The reporting of a family in difficulty, that needs support, occurs most of the time by the professionals of the Consultorio who meet the new mothers during the birth preparation and breastfeeding courses or because it is the mother herself who asks for help.
Once the situation is understood, the path begins with our educators who every week, for a year, go to the family home, to concretely help the parents. Closeness passes through the sharing of games, walks, activities dedicated to the little ones also promoted by other organizations in our territory, support in everyday activities, moments of dialogue and comparison. All actions that aim to strengthen the relationship between parent and child, but also the network of relationships that can be built in the territory.
Furthermore, once a month, the entire project team does a supervision, that is, a meeting with an external psychologist, who supports all the professionals in their work.
Sometimes the arrival of a child is the result of a long wait, other times, however, motherhood is unexpected, it enters the life of mothers when they themselves are little more than young girls.
This is the story of Marika, who was engaged for a few months to a boy she loves. They are living the life of all twenty-year-olds. Then a delay, the discovery of being pregnant. They are fearful, but especially the father who decides to end the relationship. When Matilde is born, her parents are no longer a couple, but despite this each one tries to give their best in this new role. In the mother's family, as in the father's, there is so much love, but also so much need to create a peaceful environment, to give things back the right importance to put the needs of the new arrival at the center, without being overwhelmed by the anger or resentment that sometimes pop up when life doesn't go as imagined.
The opportunity to take part in the “With the families” project was proposed by the social worker at the clinic, who has known Marika for years and knows how to help her overcome her initial reticence. The time spent meeting with the educator Lucia becomes an opportunity to get to know each other, to reflect on what is happening, to take care of yourself again by regaining your own space, to recognize your strengths and use them in difficult times. It is a journey that has just begun, full of challenges and adventures that Matilde, her mother, and the educator will try to share together, ready to get involved and start over again every time when faced with obstacles that arise.
Marika joined the “With Families” project a few weeks ago, but in the last year we could not help all the families who needed support; there were so many requests, and we didn’t have the resources to accept them all.
But we have a dream: next year we would like to be able to increase the number of families supported. An increase that will only be possible thanks to you. This Christmas donate a future! Choose with a donation to stand by a fragile family in our territory. Donate now!
Every small gesture will contribute to giving help to more and more families and expand the program! Thank you from the bottom of my heart!
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