A story of humanity, redemption and hope comes from the Trani Women’s Prison, where five inmates handmade sheets for a paediatric hospital in Kenya.
This initiative combines solidarity and personal rebirth: guiding the inmates in this experience was Sister Antida Lombardi, of the Sisters of Charity, who has been volunteering at the facility for about a year.
Sœur Antida, avec les sœurs qui vivent en permanence dans la prison, a accompagné les participantes pas à pas, alliant formation, écoute et esprit communautaire.
Sister Antida, together with the Sisters who live permanently in the prison, accompanied the participants step by step, combining training, listening and community spirit.
This is how Luisa Tortosa, president of the association Angelica’s dream explains it
‘After months of waiting, our wish has come true: to be welcomed by extraordinary women who, with their hearts and hands, have created a small miracle of love. The guests of this house have made embroidered sheets, with attention to every detail, washed, ironed and packaged with a sweetness that can be felt in every thread. From the fabrics, they have created embroidered hearts, on which they have written a simple but powerful wish:
“Buona notte” – Good night in Italian and Swahili – dedicated to all the children who will sleep wrapped in this gift of love.
The material was generously donated by the La Voce di Luca Association, to whom we extend our sincere gratitude. But the real treasure was the work of the hands and hearts of these women, who were able to transform their time in confinement into a gesture of freedom and solidarity.
The emotion of this day will remain indelible. The Association Il Sogno di Angelica sincerely thanks the director Giuseppe Altomare, the commissioner Ruggiero Pastore, the educator Stefania Noviello, Don Raffaele Sarno, the Sister of Charity of SGA involved, and in particular all the women who made this project possible.
We will take a piece of your heart with us to Kenya, and there we will talk about you — your commitment, your sensitivity and your strength. Thank you, because through you we have once again felt the living presence of God in the simplest and most authentic gestures.
Don Raffaele Sarno, chaplain of the Trani Women’s Prison, says:
“A bridge of solidarity between the Trani women’s prison and Kenya. This morning, the association “Il sogno di Angelica” (Angelica’s Dream) received the bedding for the children’s beds at the Kenyan paediatric hospital, with which it has been collaborating fruitfully for some time.
The sheets and pillowcases were lovingly sewn and prepared by the inmates of the prison who, on a completely voluntary basis, joined the project, committing themselves to completing it in time for delivery next month.
The initiative was widely supported by the management, the education department and the prison police, to the point that they officially commended the inmates who took part. Everyone present was deeply moved, with a desire to continue these forms of solidarity with the most vulnerable people.
