(ANS - Rome) - On 3 March, the Day of National Civil Service was celebrated at the Quirinale in the presence of the President of the Italian Republic, Sergio Mattarella. More than 200 volunteers who are doing their year of Civil Service took part in the event. Among them was Dost Mohammad, a 20 year-old of Afghan origin, who is doing his volunteer year with the Salesians engaged in Social Work. He is taking part in the project "Refugees: a house to begin again" at the Sacro Cuore in via Marsala in Rome.

The event was held to mark the fifteenth occasion of the institution of the National Civil Service and was attended by people from many different institutions.

Dost Mohammad was one of the volunteers who told the President of the Republic about their experience of the Civil Service. "I left Afghanistan, when I was still a minor, and on the advice of a friend I started attending the centre at Sacro Cuore near Termini Station in Rome. I immediately felt welcomed by the Salesians, as in a family. Now, as a Civil Service volunteer, I help refugees and other foreign students to integrate into Italian society. Together with my friends I provide orientation for refugees. We know the Italian society, we teach them how to write their curriculum vitae and we support them in job interviews. I'm happy to do my civil service, because with my experience I can help the country that has hosted me. From being a migrant I have managed to become an asset to the country that welcomed me," he said.

There are about 1200 young people involved in social projects run by the Salesians with Fr Giovanni D'Andrea, SDB, as director. They work in oratories, schools, vocational training centres, and a reception centre for minors in Italy and abroad.

Published 04/03/2016