The Foundation was officially established in Modena in 2008 as a laboratory of ideas and projects aimed at improving the quality of life of people with disabilities and increasing their personal and housing autonomy, accompanying them towards an effective, stable and safe independence.Lucrezia Lanzani interviews Roberto Bosi, chairman of Fondazione Vita Indipendente for FARE INSIEME Charity
FARE INSIEME CHARITY is the spin-off of the FARE INSIEME project dedicated to the presentation of some onlus and non-profit associations with roots in the area around Bologna, Ferrara and Modena and that carry out extraordinarily important and crucial work for the entire community. Here are some of their stories.
by Lucrezia Lanzani*
“Autonomy: in its most
general sense, the power to read to oneself. Independence of judgement, freedom
of action."
It was the year 2008: the
Municipality of Modena, Asp Charitas, Aisla, AutAut, Anffas, Insieme a Noi and
Uildm, decided to accept a regional proposal, giving life to the Fondazione
Vita Indipendente. Ever since the guidance of the first chairman, Benito Toschi,
the Foundation carries out projects for the personal and housing autonomy of
people with disabilities and for the assessment of customised paths to improve
the quality of life of people with physical, relational and intellectual
disabilities.
«Over the years, the role
of the Fondazione Vita Indipendente has developed with the aim of holding
together, linking, connecting, coordinating and integrating these various
realities that constitute it to promote actions of improvement», says Roberto
Bosi, chairman of the Fondazione Vita Indipendente since 2023.
A team of professionals
has been working and collaborating for some time, meeting families of people
with disabilities, listening to them and building customised paths, aimed at
achieving the greatest possible independence. Within this path, projects are
born to make people with disabilities manage in living alone: apartments are
searched for, real "schools of independence" are activated, to ensure
that people with disabilities can gradually begin to experiment with
"everyday life" experiences independently.
Educators, together with
psychologists, behaviour analysts and pedagogical experts, have the task of
identifying and stimulating children's abilities, involving parents in the most
discreet way possible. «We would like their presence to be one that facilitates
the growth of their children, that encourages them to bring out the best in
themselves», replies Dr. Bosi, also highlighting the support that is given to
parents in their paths of autonomy, to help them live the change.
This is where “Let's go
live alone!” begins, the co-housing project that recently celebrated its
one-year anniversary. An apartment where, from Monday to Friday, three young
women with Down's Syndrome live, learning to provide for themselves
autonomously and independently, with the support of an educator and a team of
professionals.
«Specifically, the
project “Andiamo a vivere da sole!” (Let's go live alone!) was born from a
co-planning with the Municipality of Modena and is partly financed with the
"Dopo di noi" funds. For many other projects, resources are collected
from regional calls, donations and initiatives, such as concerts or theatrical
performances, but the Foundation aims to collaborate with other associations to
start fund-raising and to share resources. Working together means working
better», underlines the chairman Roberto Bosi.
Fondazione Vita
Indipendente believes, in fact, in the importance of networking, involving the
world of volunteering, private individuals, institutions and public bodies, and
of raising awareness among citizens on issues of public and collective importance
through targeted initiatives.
Furthermore, thanks to the
collaboration with the CSV (Centro di Servizio per il Volontariato -
Volunteering Service Centre) and the relationship with the Fondazione Modena,
Fondazione Vita Indipendente plans to renovate some buildings in the area of
the former racecourse. This would allow us to enhance the territory and develop
contacts with local realities, such as the Modena Football Club or the
University of Modena and Reggio Emilia. The proximity to the city centre would
help many young people to express their potential by interacting more with the
community. The Fondazione Vita Indipendente, with all its members, is therefore
the organisation that can significantly intervene in the area, to promote the
autonomy of people with disabilities as much as possible.
*Lucrezia Lanzani is a student at the Steam Emilia High School. She is sixteen years old and has always been interested in social issues. She has been volunteering for three years in different organisations in her community.
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