Great participation and enthusiasm accompanied the inauguration of the Proxy Centre, which took place on the evening of 8 March in Lauropoli, a hamlet of Cassano all’Ionio, with which a new space dedicated to women, the community and the shared construction of opportunities was presented to the community.
The opening of the centre, promoted by CIDIS as part of the Su.Pr.Eme. 2, supported by the Calabria Region and financed by the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund 2021–2027, was deliberately organized on the occasion of the International Day of Women’s Rights, underlining the strong symbolic and social value of the initiative.
The mission: interconnection, listening and support
The Proxy Center was created with the aim of becoming a point of reference for the area: a place to meet, listen and plan where women can share experiences, develop skills and build paths of personal and collective growth. The very name of the center recalls the concept of interconnection: creating relationships, generating opportunities and building a support network between people, institutions and communities.
The center was born from a careful analysis of the territory conducted by CIDIS operators, which highlighted the need to dedicate a specific space to women, often one of the most difficult population groups to reach due to social and cultural barriers. The Proxy Center takes shape from this need, conceived as a space capable of restoring time, autonomy and the possibility of growth.
The team and the value of female empowerment
During the inauguration, the professionals of the all-female team who will lead the center’s activities spoke: Debora La Rocca, coordinator of the Su.Pr.Eme project. 2, Monica Rugiano, manager of the Proxy Center, Martina La Gamma, psychologist, Felicja Lione, educator, Caterina Grisolia, social worker, and the Italian teachers Angela Gramiccio, Domenica Pesce and Mariella De Marco.
During the event, a creative journey created within the center was also presented: the painting of a tree, born from a participatory workshop involving two young beneficiaries of the SAI project of Cassano allo Ionio. The work symbolically represents roots, growth and collaboration and is the result of a *non-formal education* process, an educational method based on learning through experience that will characterize many of the centre’s workshops and activities. At the center of this approach is the concept of empowerment, understood as a path of awareness of one’s own resources, limits and skills.
Institutional synergies and local participation
Institutional representatives and project partners were also present at the event, including Renato Scordamaglia, Lara Colace and Rossella Ioele of the NOVA Consortium, partners of the Regions involved in the project. Also present was the Bishop of the Diocese of Cassano all’Ionio, Monsignor Francesco Savino, together with the representatives of the municipal administration of Cassano all’Ionio: the Deputy Mayor Giuseppe La Regina, the Councilor for Social Policies and Equal Opportunities Rosa De Franco and the City Councilor Ida Spezzano.
Particular thanks were addressed to the parish priest Don Attilio Franco Foscaldi, who made the spaces that now house the center available.
The inauguration was also a moment of participation for the little ones. Great enthusiasm accompanied the creative bracelet making workshop, much appreciated by the children present. Each child created their own bracelet as a symbol of their value, their uniqueness and the ability to give to others: a simple yet meaningful gesture, designed to convey an important message from childhood, that everyone has a value to recognize and share.
Upcoming appointments: help desks and training courses
The Proxy Center is already looking to the future with a series of activities designed for the area. From March 9th the following are active:
* SOS School Help Desk: dedicated to support between families and educational institutions, every Tuesday from 3.00pm to 6.00pm and every Thursday from 9.30am to 1.30pm.
* Social secretariat desk: every Friday from 9.30 to 13.30.
* Moments of co-planning: every Friday from 3pm to 6pm, spaces for discussion and participation in which women will be able to express ideas, needs and proposals to build the centre’s future activities together.
Two training courses will also start in the coming weeks:
1. Italian language course, designed to strengthen knowledge of the language and encourage integration.
2. Empowerment workshop, dedicated to enhancing one’s resources and developing personal awareness.
Women interested in participating in the courses are invited to register immediately by going to the Proxy Center, in via Alcide De Gasperi (Piazza Capolanza), Lauropoli. The Proxy Center thus aims to build an increasingly stronger bond with the local community, becoming an open space for participation, growth and sharing for women, families and the territory.