In 2022 the Del Conca Group, together with you and all its stakeholders, created an outdoor Gym without Barriers, set up with seven pieces of equipment, in the park of La Casa di Marco, located in Coriano in the province of Rimini, Italy. This space allows its users, often with disabilities, to carry out physical activities outdoors, integrating the services offered by the rehabilitation center La Casa di Marco, a structure that welcomes, day and night boys and girls with severe disabilities, created by the Marco Simoncelli Foundation and managed by the Montetauro Community. The Del Conca Group has decided to use the resources traditionally allotted for Christmas gifts to renew its support for the Montetauro Community which manages La Casa di Marco, to allow for the completion of the entire park which also includes the Gym without Barriers. This way the project expands with other recreational-sports areas and paved paths in the greenery, covering an area of 9,500 square meters. The end of the construction work is already expected for January, allowing the guests of the house to take advantage of the entire park and perform activities outdoor as early as spring 2023

In 2022, the Del Conca Group, together with all its stakeholders, will create a barrier-free outdoor gym in Italy, in Coriano in the province of Rimini, fitted with a variety of equipment, in the “La Casa di Marco” park.

This space will provide an opportunity to carry out outdoor physical exercise related to aspects of disability, complementing the services offered by the “La Casa di Marco” rehabilitation centre, a facility, opened in 2019, that welcomes young men and women with severe disabilities day and night, built by the Marco Simoncelli Foundation and managed by the Montetauro Community.

The Del Conca Group has built a school facility in Mitengo, Zambia, with the resources dedicated to the 2019 and 2020 Christmas gifts.

The building features five large classrooms that comply with new regulations on social distancing due to Covid-19; the previous small structure had become unfit for use. Unfortunately, the pandemic did not spare the African continent and while the school was under construction, the country was hit by a second wave of Covid-19 and two missionaries working on site passed away.

Despite many difficulties, the school was opened in July 2021.

In Hurara, Kenya, the Del Conca Group has built a kindergarten which has become compulsory with a Kenyan state law in order to access elementary schools. In the Hurara area, the children, before this construction, did not go to school because the schools available are only in the Tarasaa area, too far away. The Mission is located in the Tana River area, near the border with Somalia, where the most heinous violence took place by a group belonging to ISIS. There are some schools in the area, but to reach one, you must walk 25 kilometers, an impossible distance for the undernourished children of the villages in the area, an area that is semi-desert and where wild animals abound. Attending classes for many children means a dignified future but also survival, thanks to a small meal offered every day to each of them. The project was completed in collaboration with the Association “Carità senza Confini” (“Charity without Boundaries”) and financed with resources originally budgeted for purchasing Christmas Presents for Del Conca Group employees.

This 2017 Christmas project led to the installation and completion of the Wassarà water line that brings drinking water from the well to the reserve tank, distribution points and the Mission. Near the Mission of Wassarà there is a small surface spring, a reservoir that collects infiltration water during heavy rains. During the dry season it decreases in quantity, making it necessary to ration it because it is insufficient for the needs of the population and for the activities. There are no other springs around the Mission and the more distant ones are very small. Wassarà is located on the top of a hill and therefore in order to find water it was necessary to go down to a depth of over 240 meters. In addition, a collection tank was built near the well at the highest point of the area so that the water line can use gravity to reach the distribution point for people and the Mission. This water network also serves the kindergarten which hosts 384 children every day and the elementary school with 600 students. Wassarà is a village in the municipality of Utuge in the district of Doyoganna, located 265 km from the capital Addis Ababa, in the large Ethiopian plateau which extends southwards at an altitude of 2300 meters above sea level.

This 2016 project was designed to support the people of the Marche region, victims of a devastating earthquake that hit Central Italy. The Del Conca Group purchased a large quantity of goods sourced from four local farms, thus helping them to the maintenance of operational continuity and allowing families to be able to face the very cold and snowy winter months with more serenity. The area, although characterized by small villages surrounded by unspoiled nature and typical crops, also features a high concentration of artisans and small businesses, among which the agri-food sector stands out in particular. The most important damage was the drop in demand suffered by these small producers, due to the fact that the historic centres of the affected countries were evacuated, the small businesses and restaurants were forced to suspend or close down their business, and many producers of agri-food specialties who routinely turned to a small local market have consequently suffered drastic reductions in requests or cancellations of orders acquired. The possibility of selling a large quantity of products in stock at a time of contraction in demand also gave companies the possibility of retaining their workers. All the product purchased by the Del Conca Group was then donated to the Papa Giovanni XXIII Community which distributed it to foster families located in the Rimini area. In fact, with this further donation, the value of the 2016 Christmas project doubled in value

This project was started and completed in 2015, with the construction of a mill powered by a generator, a training room and a keeper’s house on Mount Chikala in Malawi where three school buildings had been built in 2013. The plan was essential because most of the population on Mount Chikala lives on growing corn. Before the construction of this mill, the corn had to be transported back to the valley to be ground, and then, with any unsold quantity for the family to consume themselves but that had to be brought back to the mountain. An enormous effort and waste of time that caused many problems and frequently discouraged the farmers of the mountain. Furthermore, in these remote and isolated villages the poorest communities are based on agricultural traditions that do not consider the advantages of innovative practices known in other parts of the world. And for this reason, in addition to the mill, a training room was built whereby volunteer trainers, and specialized state teachers can show innovative solutions used elsewhere and that can give local farmers indications on improving the rotation of cultivation in the fields and the sue of fertilizers. To complete the project, a home was created for the caretaker to give greater guarantee of continuity. The project was completed in collaboration with the San Marino for the Children Onlus and financed with resources originally budgeted for purchasing Christmas Presents for Del Conca Group employees.

Zambia is one of the African countries with the highest infant mortality rate. Especially in rural areas, childbirth often turns into a tragic event leading to the death of the baby or mother. In 2018, 1 in 13 children in Africa died before their fifth birthday, a risk 15 times higher than what a child faces in Europe, where only 1 in 196 children under the age of 5 dies. Women’s risk of death during pregnancy or childbirth is 37 times higher than in Europe. In comparison, the risk of a woman’s life in Europe is 1 in 6500. Countries in conflict or in humanitarian crisis often have weak health systems that prevent women and children from accessing essential life-saving care. DEL CONCA Group has decided to promote a new solidarity project. To reduce the suffering and infant mortality in Lusaka in Zambia, a paediatric ward was built in the St Clare Clinic located in the very poor Makeni neighbourhood. The works started in January 2015 and at the end of 2016 the clinic was opened. The project was completed in collaboration with the Association “Carità senza Confini” (“Charity without Boundaries”) and financed with resources originally budgeted for purchasing Christmas Presents for Del Conca Group employees.

In 2013 our attention was caught by a small village located on the Chikala mountain, in southern Malawi, 50 km from Zomba. This village is home to over 300 families, with a total population of about 3.000 people. While the hamlet was short of pretty much all the basic necessities, the village chief asked to provide them with a school. A place their children can grow, learn to write and read, and lay the foundations of an independent future for them. Unfortunately, this village is not well linked to other villages and towns in the surrounding area, with the only way to get to the next closest hamlet being a 2-hour long walking path. A very steep, tiring and somehow dangerous path, particularly for the kids, who as a result find themselves being emarginated from any kind of social contact with people outside of their village. After 9 months of uninterrupted works, on September the 19th 2013, we celebrated the opening of three brand-new facilities in the Chikala village, hosting 8 classrooms, plus a support office. The project was completed in collaboration with the San Marino for the Children Onlus and financed with resources originally budgeted for purchasing Christmas Presents for Del Conca Group employees.

The Facchini Theater of Meldola was the beating heart of the town. It was shut down on the 29th of May 2012, after being devastated by an earthquake that struck the whole area. This project consist of the restoration of the theatre dressing rooms adjacent to the stage, as well as the reconstruction of the headquarters of AVIS (an Italian Blood Donor Association), located in the same building. The new Avis facility is now on two floors, the first one being used for blood sampling, while on the second can be found the Association Archive and a meeting room. An important structural intervention was carried out, with the aim to achieve a seismic improvement and to make structure in conformity with currently normative. Thanks to such intervention the Avis facility was back up and running within 16 months from the earthquake. The project was completed in one year, financed with resources originally budgeted for purchasing Christmas Presents for Del Conca Group employees.

The foster houses in Matola were conceived and designed to be located inside the San Marino for the Children Village, right next to the kindergarten. They accommodate orphans with a troubled past, and no one else they can count on. The whole facility was built in nine months. A parental couple was selected and started occupying the house with the first three orphans – Manuele, Mattias e Gloria. Shortly after, they were joined by Alinafe. The foster dad receives a monthly cheque of 10.000 Kwacha as school janitor. They went on becoming a very large family of 16 members, including the foster couple. Many years have gone by, but this family remains special: their houses is fully fitted (and with not a single window missing!), clean, and none of the kids feels like they are orphans as they get to experience a real family life. Of course, the number of kids vary from time to time, but never below 14 members. These kids have found a family that can help them grow up peacefully and find their own way in life. In 2019, after a long wait, their home was eventually connected to the electrical grid, thus allowing them to get a fridge and a TV. The project was completed in one year in collaboration with the Association “Carità senza Confini” (“Charity without Boundaries”) and financed with resources originally budgeted for purchasing Christmas Presents for Del Conca Group employees.

The construction of a Medical Centre offering their services to the people from the Wasserà village. The Centre eventually became available also to the adjacent communities – with an average daily attendance of over a hundred patients, thanks to an important resurfacing work of the main road leading to the village. The hospital is open 24/7, with medics, midwives and specialized medical staff constantly present, assisted by volunteers and Mission Centres. Vaccinations programmes were intensified, and special programmes were developed for unnourished and malnourished children, amongst which the distribution of vitamin-added flour and training programs for the mothers. Other services include vision care – with a fully equipped centre for Catarat Surgery available, and a Maternity Clinic, the latter being ever so important as all soon-to-be mothers are now required by law to give birth in such specialised medical centres with the aim of helping decrease the rate of mortality. The project was completed in one year in collaboration with “Carità senza Confini” (“Charity without Boundaries”) and financed with resources originally budgeted for purchasing Christmas Presents for Del Conca Group employees.

This project consists in the construction of a Day-care Centre for children left orphaned by the Tsunami that struck Indonesia in 2004. The major earthquake, and the subsequent tidal wave, caused about 300.000 human casualties – a third of which were children – and millions of homeless. The Centre offers after-school activities, a canteen and showers. Today, a hundred children can benefit from the facilities of the Tsunami Orphans’ Home, to enjoy a hot meal, do their homework, and get involved in recreational-educational activities. Over sixty of them also attend the Centre’s Kindergarten. These kids come from to the poorest families in the area, who otherwise would be unable to look after them. After lunch and having finished their homework, the children can play and have a shower before returning to their families. Occasionally, the kids are taken to the zoo, the swimming pool, the park, and great importance is given to the celebration of their birthday, by means of a monthly joint party. The Centre also offers a Medical Service, with Korean doctors travelling from Singapore. Thanks to the Tsunami Orphans’ Home these children can become educated, polite and dignified citizens, while being able to embrace a religion of their choice. This was a two-year project: the facility was built and opened in 2008, while the following year the Centre was equipped with furniture, an outdoor area, a new well and a School Bus. The project was completed in collaboration with “Carità senza Confini” (“Charity without Boundaries”), financed with resources originally budgeted for purchasing Christmas Presents for Del Conca Group employees. The children are looked after by the Missionary Sisters of the “Assisi Solidale Onlus”.

This project consists in the construction of a Day-care Centre for children left orphaned by the Tsunami that struck Indonesia in 2004. The major earthquake, and the subsequent tidal wave, caused about 300.000 human casualties – a third of which were children – and millions of homeless. The Centre offers after-school activities, a canteen and showers. Today, a hundred children can benefit from the facilities of the Tsunami Orphans’ Home, to enjoy a hot meal, do their homework, and get involved in recreational-educational activities. Over sixty of them also attend the Centre’s Kindergarten. These kids come from to the poorest families in the area, who otherwise would be unable to look after them. After lunch and having finished their homework, the children can play and have a shower before returning to their families. Occasionally, the kids are taken to the zoo, the swimming pool, the park, and great importance is given to the celebration of their birthday, by means of a monthly joint party. The Centre also offers a Medical Service, with Korean doctors travelling from Singapore. Thanks to the Tsunami Orphans’ Home these children can become educated, polite and dignified citizens, while being able to embrace a religion of their choice. This was a two-year project: the facility was built and opened in 2008, while the following year the Centre was equipped with furniture, an outdoor area, a new well and a School Bus. The project was completed in collaboration with “Carità senza Confini” (“Charity without Boundaries”), financed with resources originally budgeted for purchasing Christmas Presents for Del Conca Group employees. The children are looked after by the Missionary Sisters of the “Assisi Solidale Onlus”.