They begin in the early morning guiding youngsters in game, a leisure activity and a moment of reflection. This is the initiative promoted in the Vatican specifically for the new generations, which takes place from 3 July to 4 August. The educators' task is to involve the youngsters on a journey that has Pope Francis' encyclical Fratelli Tutti as its background. They do this through play, sports, performances and group workshops. The theme chosen this year is, in fact, “Bee heroes - Teams of heroes”, where the bees help them to understand certain values while having fun.
Sister April Hoffman comes from the United States of America, where she taught in an elementary and secondary school. She is 36 years old and is currently in Rome to attend a course on Salesian spirituality. “I am very happy to have this experience in the Vatican with so many children,” she said. During this period of study in Rome, in fact, she lacked direct contact with children, because talking to them about Jesus according to the spirit of Don Bosco is for her “to have a family experience together”. Don Bosco, Sister Hoffman explains, wanted to bring young people to Jesus and vice versa. For this reason, she feels privileged to be able to play the role of educator in the place where the Pope lives and where there are treasures of faith and art, such as St Peter's Basilica, the Museums and the Vatican Gardens.
Salesian Avil Correia is 30 years old and comes from Mumbai, India. He is a third-year theology student at the Pontifical Salesian University. He already attended the aspirantate In Mumbai to discern his vocation, and then a year of novitiate. Now, he is getting ready for the priesthood. For him, too, the Vatican experience “is unique, different from what I have done in the last two years. Here we collaborate a lot with the laity, it is a new way of working even if the style is Salesian." He is very happy to see that children feel at home at Estate Ragazzi and have fun and learn with activities and workshops, games and special events.
The role of educators, he explains, is “to be together with responsible leaders. From the morning when there are games, during meals, until moments for formation." The fundamental task is to be close to everyone in order to offer the Salesian spirit, which is “to bring the love of Christ to children, and to be signs and bearers of this love.” Correia emphasises that “we are living this spirit in sharing time with children and their families through our presence and closeness.” In fact, what is important is collaboration with the laity. He continues, “we are focusing a lot on this aspect and we are learning from each other, applying the method of Don Bosco.”
The “oldest” team member is Fr Joseph Benny, also from India, who is 43 years old. He has been a priest for 12 years and lives in the Salesian community at the Catacombs of San Callisto in Rome. He is the coordinator of Estate Ragazzi and this is the second year in this role. For him, too, this experience is “very enriching and full of blessings for both children and adults.” What strikes him most in this 2023 edition is to see the commitment of the 20 fifteen-year-olds who are supporting the leaders. They have already participated in Estate Ragazzi in previous seasons and now that they are older, they can become fully-fledged leaders in two years.
