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SICILY: HANDOVER OF THE PLAQUE AND GRANT TO THE DEPARTMENT OF SPECIAL DENTISTRY OF ACIREALE’S HOSPITAL

14/02/2023

On Saturday 11th of February, on the occasion of the recurrence of the 20th year of activity of the department of special rehabilitative dentistry on a disabled person, the ceremony of handover of the grant for the rehabilitative impiantology on disabled patients was celebrated in the conference room “Rino Nicolosi” of S. Marta and S. Venera’s hospital.

Grant “H.R.H. Princess Maria Carolina of Bourbon Two Sicilies, Duchess of Calabria and Palermo”

The exeptional work of the team directed by Dr. Riccardo Spampinato had benefited from a first aid on the part of the Order that had contributed to a non-stop erogation of the services during the particoular period of the pandemic.
Dr. Rosario Cunsolo – Medical Director of Acireale and Dr. Maurizio Lanza – General Director welcomed H.R.H. Princess Beatrice of Bourbon Two Sicilies, Grand Prefect, arrived to the hospital, accompanied by the Vice Delegate for Sicily Noble Antonio di Janni and by Esq. Antonino Amato, referent of Catania and Province, as well as organizer of the event, and by Mr. Massimo Putrino.
The day started with the readout of a message from On. Alessandra Locatelli – Ministry of disability, afterwards there have been interventions of On. Gaetano Galvagno – ARS’s President, of On. Luca Sammartino – Vice-president of the Sicilian Region, of Dr. Giovanna Volo – Regional Councilor of health On. Nicola D’Agostino and of H.E. the Most Reverend Mons. Antonino Raspanti, Acireale’s Bishop, President of the Sicilian Episcopal Conference.
At 11.00 Dr. Giovanni Di Giacomo was awarded as winner of the grant and he will develop the implantology on a disabled patient. H.R.H. Prince Charles of Bourbon Two Sicilies, Duke of Castro and Grand Master attended the event in videoconference and praised the work of the department confirming the closeness of the Royal Family and of the Constantinian Order to this humanitarian project implemented by the department of special rihabilitative dentistry in a disabled patient.
At the end of the cerimony the Head of the department took the floor, Dr. G. Riccardo Spampinato – Director UOC Special Rihabilitative Dentistry ASP of Catania, that has retraced the twenty years long path of the department and thanked the Order for its precious and continuous support.
Right after the conference, H.R.H. Princess Beatrice handed over to Dr. Spampinato a medal of the Sicilian delegation with the effigies of Princesses Maria Carolina and Maria Chiara on one side and on the other side the Sicilian eagle with the Bourbonic emblem.

SOUTHERN-EAST ASIA: MR. NAPASRI WAS GIVEN THE DECORATION OF THE ROYAL ORDER OF FRANCIS I

6/02/2023

Thonburi, 2 February 2023 – The Delegate H.E. Don Antonio Benedetto Spada, in His capacity as Private Councillor to the Grand Master, Knight of the Illustrious Royal Order of Saint Januarius, having received authorization and full power from His Royal Highness Prince Charles of Bourbon Two Sicilies, Duke of Castro, Grand Master, to represent Him in this auspicious occasion, conferred upon Mister Peerapun Napasri the Rank of Grand Officer of the Royal Order of Francis I, in the beautiful premises of Khlong Bang Luang Palace.

The distinguished Guests gathered to cheer as well the 91st Birthday of H.E. Don Antonio Benedetto Spada, whose granddaughter Dottoressa Donna Esmeralda was present, who flew to Thailand all the way from Italy to represent the Spada Family on this historic moment.

The Ambassadors of Belgium, Italy, Poland (the latter, Dean of the Diplomatic Corps), the Deputy Ambassador of Maldives, a former Thai Ambassador to Italy joined the Investiture Ceremony and lunch, organized with the kind hospitality of Mister Peerapun Napasri and Family, and the assistance of the Vice Delegate and the First Secretary of Delegation.

EMILIA ROMAGNA: RECENT DELEGATION ACTIVITIES

30/01/2023

Mons. Arnaldo Morandi, Secretary General of the Grand Prior’s office, presided over the mass in San Dalmazio in suffrage of Corrado Sforza Fogliani thirty days after his death, accompanied by Father Stefano Antonelli and Mons. Celso Dosi, respectively Vice Prior and Knight of the delegation of Emilia Romagna and by Father Davide Maloberti, director of “Il Nuovo Giornale”.
Mons. Morandi spoke to Mr. Sforza Fogliani’s wife, Maria Antonietta and to his daughter Maria Paola, renewing the Order’s grief and communicating that on the same morning Card. Martino had celebrated, in his private chapel in the Vatican, a mass in suffrage of the man that held the role of Delegate of the Order in Emilia Romagna for many years. Knights and Dames of the Order of Piacenza and other districts took part in the religious ceremony. President Giuseppe Nenna attended this ceremony on behalf of Piacenza’s Bank directors.
The Vice Delegate of Emilia Romagna Knight Pietro Coppelli has ensured continuity of action of the Regional Delegation in the path traced by Dr. Sforza Fogliani, while respecting the principles of the Catholic faith and of the acts of charity made in favour of the disvantaged people. Dr. Coppelli has expressed feelings of closeness and grief to the family on behalf of H.R.H. Prince Charles of Bourbon Two Sicilies, Duke of Castro, Grand Master and read a message of Mons. Gianni Ambrosio, Prior of the Delegation Emilia Romagna.
On this occasion, the honorary title of Knight Grand Cross of Grace that H.R.H. the Grand Master had assigned to Esq. Sforza Fogliani over the last months has been delivered to his wife, Prof. De Micheli, for his commitment in the valorization of the Delegation’s activities.

The appointment diploma was delivered to Commander of the Military Academy of Modena. The ceremony of investiture took place at the end of November, in the hall of honor of the Academy.
Besides of the Vice Delegate Dr. Coppelli and of the Commander, the ceremony was attended also by the Representative of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Knight Grand Cross of Merit Ilario Pagani.
Moreover, the ceremony was attended by some Knights of Modena and by the Military Chaplain of the Academy.

Click HERE to read the activities of the delegation between november-december 2022.

SOUTHERN- EAST ASIA: FURTHER ACTIVITIES AND DONATIONS

30/01/2023

Bangkok, 18 January 2023 – At the presence of the Honourable Chadchart Sittipunt, Bangkok Governor, His Excellency Paolo Dionisi presided the inauguration of “ALMA The School Food”, founded to spread Italian food culture in Thailand.
His Excellency Don Antonio Benedetto Spada, Knight of the Royal Order of Saint Januarius, Delegate for Southeast Asia, accompanied by the Vice Delegate and the First Secretary, attended the event organized to celebrate Italian culinary arts in the Kingdom.

Bangkok, 18 January 2023 – At the Foreign Correspondents Club, the Vice Delegate offered a donation to Joseph H. Maeir, the priest simply known as Father Joe in the Bangkok slum community where he lives and works. Few foreigners have achieved such revered status in Thailand. Father Joe co-founded the Human Development Center, better known as the Mercy Center, with a Thai Catholic nun, Sister Maria, in 1973. 2023 marks the priest’s half-century of service to the slum dwellers, providing education from kindergarten level upwards, an outreach program and legal aid services for children trafficked into the sex industry or surviving on the streets. Father Joe was the driving force behind a landmark HIV/AIDS program that fed and housed people of all ages living with AIDS, as well as children orphaned by the disease during the height of the epidemic in the 1990s and beyond. The Mercy Center’s work extended to the indigenous Moken community in southern Thailand following the Asian tsunami in 2004. Its home care program for people living with AIDS — delivered by HIV-positive people — provided a model that was replicated elsewhere in Thailand and Southeast Asia. The priest gained a loyal readership of his Bangkok Post column filled with human stories about the foibles, heartbreaks and strengths of people UN officials call the “urban poor” but he calls “family”. He authored Welcome to the Bangkok Slaughterhouse, and The Gospel of Father Joe: Revolutions and Revelations in the Slums of Bangkok. The Mercy Center has assisted tens of thousands of Thais in need and garnered recognition from Her Majesty Sirikit, the Queen Mother. The evening at FCCT, which considered the event a “Night of Honour”, celebrated Father Joe’s remarkable life and service, and gave a chance to hear his concerns about how Thailand’s underprivileged still need far more attention. The priest has been joined by Khun Choy, a Mercy Center lifelong staff member, and Tom Crowley, author of Mercy’s Heroes – The Fight for Human Dignity in the Bangkok Slums.

Bangkok, 19 January 2023 – The Vice Delegate attended the inauguration of Walk!, an exhibition showcasing photographs of people who lost a limb to accident or illness held at the Central Embassy shopping mall, officially opened by Princess Lea of Belgium (on Her third private visit to Thailand) and H.S.H. Prince Chalermsuk Yugala. The four-day exhibition is being held in collaboration with the Chao Phya Abhai Raja Siammanukulkij Foundation, the Prostheses Foundation of H.R.H. the Princess Mother and the Thai fashion house Voravaj Bangkok. On display, oversized photographs of amputees in fashionable attire along with a synopsis of their life stories and what they did to overcome the difficulties in life. “The exhibition aims to create awareness about the help Prostheses Foundation has been giving amputees for 30 years,” Count Gerald van der Straten Ponthoz, the Chairman of Chao Phya Abhai Raja Siammanukulkij Foundation said. “The exhibition wants to send a message to all of those who face similar difficulties, that whatever the circumstances may be, dreams can always be achieved.” Princess Lea of Belgium, during Her stay. will attend various events celebrating the 15th anniversary of the Chao Phya Abhai Raja Siammanukulkij Foundation, no profit organization.

Bangkok, 24 January 2023 – Education is a human right, a public good and a public responsibility.
The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 24 January as International Day of Education, in celebration of the role of education for peace and development.
By kind invitation of Dato Steve Cheah, Commander of the Royal Order of Francis I, the Vice Delegate joined the Fifth International Day of Education, celebrated under the theme “to invest in people, prioritize education”, attended by several Ambassadors (Bangladesh, Bahrein, Malaysia, Kenya, Kosovo…) and UN representatives.

Pattaya, 28 January 2023 – The Vice Delegate attended the “H.R.H. Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn Cup”, Thai Polo event aimed at fundraising for Chitrlada Technology Institute.

Bangkok, 26 January 2023 – The Vice Delegate attended the “Lion Dinner”, an event about Thainess, gastronomy, art, culture and friendship between nations, presided by Princess Lea of Belgium and Prince Chalermsuk Yugala, organized by the Chao Phya Abhai Raja Simmanukulkij Foundation, as a part of a series of events aimed at celebrating its 15 years of successful activities. Amongst the Guests, Ambassadors of countries such as Israel, Singapore and Representatives of various Thai Ministeries. The Foundation has organized many activities and events over the years, such as books publishing, the inauguration of statues, the organization of many charity campaigns and important commemorative events, musical and artistic projects; it has built a complete football stadium to allow the community to play sports and get away from drugs, and has hosted members of the Royal families of Thailand, Belgium, and other countries, in important gala dinners.
The Chao Phya Abhai Raja Foundation does not rely on outside donations to bring its projects to success. All projects are, for the most important part, funded by private donations of the Chairman and the board members.

CHARITABLE AND WELFARE ACTIVITIES OF THE CALABRIAN DELEGATION DURING THE CHRISTMAS PERIOD

30/01/2023

Reggio Calabria, December 2022: fifty hot meals prepared in single portions were donated to parish Caritas of Candelora in Reggio Calabria and will be distributed to the poorest people in the territory.

Reggio Calabria – 09 December 2022. The Calabrian Delegation wanted to focus on the most needy people setting up a donation in favour of the “Piccola Opera Papa Giovanni” Association in Reggio Calabria.
The President of the Association, Dr. Pietro Siclari and the Accountable Dr. Francesca Mallamaci welcomed the Vice Delegate Dr. Aurelio Badolati, accompanied by a group of Knights of the Calabrian Delegation, at the premises of the structure located at Via a Reggio Calabria, where the reception center for mothers and minor children in need is currently located,
With the aim of supporting the necessities of the women and their children, who are guests of the reception center, the Delegation has donated shopping vouchers that can be spent at the Toys Center for the purchase of clothing, food, toys and school supplies.

Sunday 11 of December Dames, Knights, meritorious and Constantinian volunteers of the Calabrian Delegation gathered in Reggio Calabria, at the Candelora’s church, to attend the Eucharistic celebration presided by Vice Prior Father Luigi Cannizzo. At the end of the Eucharistic celebration, the Delegation came together for a fraternal dinner, that allowed the many participants to exchange Christmas greetings.

10 of january 2023, the presentation of the book “Chiesa, Vescovi e Cattedrale di Cosenza. Dalla Controriforma a fine seicento” took place at the Cathedral of Cosenza. The volume, strongly wanted by Mgr. Nole’, Archbishop in the Cosenza /Bisignano’s Diocese, recently died, tells the story of the cosentina’s Diocese, of its bishops, of the city, retracing important steps through the past centuries. The Calabrian Delegation was invited to participate in the event and Cosenza’s city Representative, Knight Giuseppe Spizzirri Marzo, greeted those attending and the organizers of the conference also on behalf of the Delegates by thanking for the attention and praising the initiative.

On January 5th, the Calabrian Delegation, adhering to the service called “Aggiungi un Posto a Tavola” by LIONS club “Polistena Brutium” of Polistena, has donated food to the Assosiation “Il Samaritano” managed by the Santa Maria Vergine of Polistena’s parish.