Brienza (Italia). The interruption of the school and oratory activities of Mary Help of Christians Community of the FMA of Brienza (Potenza) – Southern Province of Our Lady of Good Counsel (IMR) – the lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic, did not discourage five young women from Vides Civil Service, who asked to make themselves useful through a twinning with the Municipality of Brienza.
The Mayor of the city, Antonio Giancristiano, and the Councilor for Social Policies, Giuseppe Grano, thus proposed to the young women to adopt the “M. Collazzo ”, closed to the public for years. Equipped with personal protective equipment – masks, gloves, and disinfectant gel – they set to work to catalog the volumes, ancient and modern, in Italian, Latin, and other languages, finding in their hands a wealth of manuscripts and rare books, including historical discoveries of illustrious citizens of the area.
The young women worked from June until mid-August 2020, committing time and energy with enthusiasm and keeping the doors open so that the citizens of Brienza could see a place they loved so much return to new life. Experience has shown the importance of pooling resources and charisms to provide a foundation for projects that are useful for the growth of the area, as well as being an opportunity for young people to relaunch, as the protagonists stressed:
“The library experience was interesting and pleasant and for us it was a moment of ‘rebirth’, a ‘reintegration’ into society after a dark period. The end of this path is actually only the beginning of a new challenge, given by the reopening of oratory and school activities, which is requiring a great effort for the preparation of ‘child-friendly’ environments, guaranteeing a safe start”.
Excelente idea las bibliotecas no deben perderse.