28 November 2025
Tell us about your involvement with the Meeting and why taking part in building it matters to you
“Come on, it’s full of pretty girls.” That’s how my very first Meeting began, more than twenty years ago. In reality, it didn’t last long: I had to rush back home because of a serious family issue. But the friend who invited Alessandro had the perfect intuition, because right there at the fair he met the most beautiful girl of all: Valeria. She, too, was volunteering at the cash registers. “Today, together, we are responsible for more than 140 cashiers across all the Meeting’s food service areas.”
“The Meeting is my home,” Alessandro continues. “When I’m here, I feel at home, like all the volunteers do. And not just because my wife and I met here: our children also grew up at the Meeting with us, from the time they were tiny. One year we worked at the cash registers with the baby strapped in the carrier. It’s a place that belongs to us, that we really feel is ours. It’s the same feeling I have when I’m taking care of our house in Rozzano: if something is yours, you treat it differently.”
And Valeria adds: “The Meeting does more good for me than I could ever do for the Meeting. It’s a week that gives me room to breathe and helps me refocus. During the year, things outside are different: people step on each other, criticize each other, and there’s little appreciation for others’ work.”
The Meeting has also helped with professional decisions: “I was teaching in a private school when I received an offer from the State. I hesitated, because in my old school I had many long–standing relationships. We were in Rimini, and Alessandro told me: look for someone here at the Meeting to share this decision with. And so I faced that transition with much greater peace of mind.”
And about working at the cash registers — which might not sound poetic — Alessandro wants to make something clear: “It’s not true that it’s just a logistical task,” I always say. “It’s the best place to gain experience. At the cash registers, you see everyone’s face. Even just with a glance, you enter into a relationship with people.”
Why do you think the Meeting is good for the world?
Valeria puts it perfectly: “The Meeting is a powerful testimony to the fact that, despite everything happening around us — wars, conflicts, divisions — there exists a place that shows how very different people, with different experiences and religions, can find common ground. Here, what we offer goes beyond diversity: diversity itself becomes an opportunity to grow, not a reason for conflict. Dialogue is possible, and diversity is a strength that helps us grow.”
Why is it important to support it?
“The Meeting is a great and beautiful experience,” they both say. “It thrives on the contribution of the volunteers, but of course that alone is not enough. It’s important to support it: we do so with our work, but there are many ways. One of the simplest is the 5x1000: we always allocate it to the Meeting.”
Alessandro adds a detail that means a lot to him: “Certain details matter. For example, asking for a one-euro contribution at the cash register: once it felt almost embarrassing. But today many people give it knowing they’re helping build something great. You can tell by the way they hand it to you: even that single euro helps build a little corner of the Meeting.”
