Aid and Comfort for the Homeless: Croce d’Oro of Prato Reactivates Cold Emergency Service

The appeal to the people of Prato: “We need blankets, tea, sturdy paper cups, sugar, pajamas, socks, and hooded sweatshirts.”

With the arrival of winter, the Croce d’Oro of Prato has once again set in motion the “Angels of the Cold.” These are the volunteers of Via Niccoli who meet twice a week in the association in the evening, prepare hot beverages, food, blankets, clothing, essential items, and go out into the streets of Prato to provide assistance to the homeless. These are people who, due to various circumstances, have become homeless and prefer to stay on the streets rather than turn to the La Pira soup kitchen or the dormitory. They are mostly men, often foreigners, but there are also some women. The numbers, compared to last year, have slightly increased, as observed directly in the field by the volunteers of the Via Niccoli association.

The organization dispatches two vehicles from the central headquarters of the Croce d’Oro of Prato at around 10 PM, each carrying five volunteers. The route covers some areas frequented by the homeless: the central station, the Pietà church, Via Torelli, Via Valentini, Via Soffici, just to name a few. “We provide them with hot drinks, food, and, most importantly, we try to engage in dialogue,” explains Nadia Burani, coordinator of the Croce d’Oro volunteers who provide the cold emergency service. “We offer them comfort and try to understand why they ended up sleeping on the streets. And when possible, we try to direct them to local facilities. Often, residents themselves report the presence of new homeless individuals, and we immediately expand our nightly route to try to help them all.”