Event
16 novembre 2019
Ricorrono quest'anno i 10 anni di fondazione della nostra Associazione "Farul - il Faro".
8 dicembre 2019
MERCATINO DI NATALE
Stabio
15 dicembre 2019
MERCATINO DI NATALE
Pedrinate
Who we are
The Farul Association - "the Lighthouse" - was established in November 2009 with the aim of formalizing the voluntary work for children and adolescents in the village of Sanmihaiu German in Romania. Since 2004, a group of young Ticino people has taken to heart the reality of this small village and is committed to proposing and supporting educational and recreational activities. The lighthouse, "farul" in Romanian, wants to be a light of hope, a point of reference in situations of hardship.
The village of Sanmihaiu German is located 17 km from Timisoara and until 1989 it was almost exclusively inhabited by Germans. Following the fall of communism they were able to return home and their well-kept homes were given by the state to poor families from all over Romania. As a result, a precarious social situation has developed in the village, with problems linked to poverty such as alcoholism, violence and a low level of education.
What do we do
The purpose of the Farul Association is to establish a bridge, a connection between Ticino (Switzerland) and Romania.
The intervention of the Farul Association is addressed above all to children and young people, particularly vulnerable to the consequences of this context. The aim is to offer young people the chance to experience a healthy but joyful lifestyle and give them hope for the future.
We support needy people and families through donations and sponsorships, in particular we contribute to the bus subscription fees so that children can continue to attend a vocational school or high school after middle school. In the past we have promoted, in collaboration with the local church, after-school activities to help children with homework. Unfortunately this activity has come to fall due to lack of collaborators, but we hope to be able to propose it again in the future.
During the school year we help financially Gabi, one of our collaborators, who meets regularly with a group of young teenagers from Sanmihaiu German and organizes Christmas, Easter and Children's Day parties.
Every year we promote summer camps for children and adolescents in the village. During this week the children experience community life, participate in creative and outdoor sports activities, visit their country and receive teachings on Christian ethical and moral values. Participation is always excellent and the kids are enthusiastic. Those who no longer have the age to participate often return as a monitor!
In recent years we have also begun to take an interest in the sanitary conditions of homes. On the recommendation of our collaborator Lena we intervened by sponsoring the installation of sanitary facilities and improvement works in the houses. Lena takes care of pointing out particularly difficult family situations and together we define an aid strategy.
Our association also wants to promote the knowledge of the respective cultures (Swiss and Romanian) and the birth of friendship relations between the two peoples.
If you also want to bring light and hope to Romania, contact us!