Continuing the collaboration and building new paths together with the young people of Colore del Grano. That was the goal of the meeting between USL’s Secretary General Francesca Busignani and Francesca Civerchia, head of the Disability Operating Unit (U.O.C. Disabilità), following the success of the gadgets created for the union’s 5th Congress.
For the congress, the Unione Sammarinese Lavoratori (USL) had commissioned the young participants to make keyrings and bookmarks for guests. The items were delivered by the very people who made them, allowing them to experience firsthand the appreciation of attendees.
“Even today, people tell us how moved they were to receive such a unique gift, the result of the skill of those who designed and crafted it.
It’s a great source of pride for USL,” reads the union’s statement.
The recognition of skills and the tangible value of the work carried out are at the heart of Civerchia’s words: “The young people,” she said, “were thrilled because they had the chance to express themselves creatively, to feel part of an inclusive community, and to see their contribution recognised as truly useful.
The message, if you think about it, is a powerful one: this was a genuine working opportunity that also translated into financial compensation, giving tangible value to their commitment, creativity and skills.
After receiving the assignment, they organised the work themselves, planning it out and assigning roles based on each person’s abilities, so that everyone could contribute.
They felt genuinely involved, like an active part of the community and of USL’s team, helping make the Congress a success. For them, it was also a completely new experience.
They are very hardworking people who have long been making favours for baptisms, first communions and confirmations, but this was the first time they received a commission of this kind — creating gadgets for a major event like a Congress.
It was also very meaningful for them to hand out the gadgets personally, which made them feel part of the larger USL family.
It was a way to leave a mark — an emotional thread of life, experience and sharing, in a sense quite different from charity.
USL saw in these young people a precious, genuine resource: extraordinary industriousness, and a will and joy for life that are far from ordinary.
It was about recognising that people with disabilities deserve the same consideration and the same opportunities as everyone else, without distinction — valuing, in practice and not just in words, their solid, precise and unique skills.”
The head of the Disability Operating Unit also highlighted the partnership already underway with the union and the therapeutic rehabilitation contract that has been running for years.
“This isn’t the first time,” Civerchia concluded, “that USL has turned words into action. Its commitment has proven constant — just look at how it has been carrying out a therapeutic rehabilitation contract that has now continued for many years.
I’m confident the future will be marked by this same collaboration, and for that I want to thank the USL union.”
Busignani linked the experience of the Congress to broader opportunities for entry into the job market: “These are words that warm the heart,” said Secretary General Busignani, “just as the keyrings and bookmarks made by these young people brought a ray of light and helped make the atmosphere of the Congress truly special.
It is we who should be thanking them, for the skills they were able to express and put to use.
My hope is that the job market, too, will open its eyes to this immense human asset and give it the recognition it deserves — an asset that carries with it richness, happiness and values that a community has a responsibility to reflect in its choices.”
