PESENTI FOUNDATION

The collaboration between Fondazione Pesenti and Bergamo Caritas

Over the years, Fondazione Pesenti and Bergamo Caritas have built a strong and fruitful partnership, developing projects that combine solidarity, education, and personal growth.

In 2020–2021, the initiative “Ricominciamo Insieme” (Let’s Start Again Together) focused on the creation of a “Family Emergency Fund – Covid-19”, aimed at supporting families facing severe poverty and hardship due to the effects of the pandemic. The fund was intended to cover a range of essential household expenses, such as rent and related housing costs, school fees, job protection, in-home elderly care, and other emerging needs. This concrete action provided vital aid to those in greatest need.

The “Ricominiamo Insieme” project was launched on June 1, 2020, and concluded on April 30, 2021. During this period, assistance was provided to 2,590 families who had never previously received help from Caritas, for a total of €6,780,000. An additional €600,000 was allocated to support 720 families already struggling financially before the Covid-19 outbreak. In terms of distance learning (didattica a distsanza – DAD), 670 tablets and 200 laptops were distributed to families in need. Finally, 89 small businesses were supported with loans of up to €20,000, repayable over six years without interest. This support was available to businesses with a maximum of five employees.

— Don Roberto Trussardi, Director of Caritas Diocesana Bergamasca

In 2022, Bergamo Caritas launched a new project aimed at ensuring access to education for students from families with socio-economic difficulties. The Foundation recognizes that access to education is not only a cornerstone of the educational system but also of society as a whole. Fondazione Pesenti Ets decided to support this new initiative with a €50,000 contribution.

The use of an unrestricted grant as a project funding method provides Caritas with flexibility and freedom in the allocation of resources. In practical terms, this means that Fondazione Pesenti Ets provided funding without predefining how the resources must be spent.