Marco Santacatterina is in his early twenties and rides in a pizzeria in Thiene in the province of Vicenza. He has an on-call contract, he’s studying at the university. He sees the images of Emilia-Romagna under the flood on TV. And he writes to the owner of the pizzeria: “I can’t come on Saturday and Sunday, I’m going to volunteer among the displaced”. He receives this answer: «You’re an asshole, a buffoon, you make me laugh. Go ahead and help, I’ll find someone else. Bye-bye.” And he gets kicked out. This is what he tells him, even if he doesn’t want to give the name of the pizzeria. Because he doesn’t want to unleash social pillory.
The previous
Marco made the decision to leave because the flood reminded him of another: «I was deeply struck by what happened in Emilia Romagna because it reminded me of the flood that devastated Vicenza in 2011. I was only 12 and I couldn’t do anything, but now that I’m an adult I felt I had to do my part.” So he contacted the Civil Protection of Bologna. And it was directed to the Telegram channel where the availability of shoveling volunteers was collected. At that point, it was Thursday, he also involved his sister, Sara and organized himself to leave and reach the Cesena area. He notified the employer. And the response has been amazing.
“Fool and Fool”
«I take myself as a fool and an asshole, in fact. I show up on Friday evening anyway, because I was supposed to work. I enter the restaurant and the owner asks me: “What are you doing here?”. I realized it was over. I said goodbye and left», he tells The print. “I lost my job for two days of volunteering. I had also taken care to warn in advance ». Santacatterina earned «about 30 euros a night but I would have done it even if it had been a thousand. I’m not rich, money comes and goes. Helping is something more.” In any case it started the same. And he tells Cesare Nicoli that the experience was «brief but profound. It’s paradoxical. They smiled even though they had lost everything. And they were trying to cheer me up. I came back with a heart full of hope.”
Help matters more than money
Now he has lost the economic income that helped him to support himself at the university: «It doesn’t seem decisive to me. I would have done the same even with a family to look after. Two days of volunteering. I’ve seen scrapbooks floating in water, children’s photos reduced to scrap paper. I did the right thing.” And finally: «I’ve been working there since the beginning of March and I’ve never had any problems. Since when is money more important than people who are sick? He lost his job, but «I don’t feel hatred. My parents understood that I was not to blame, I am receiving a lot of sympathy. The mayor of Thiene also called me. Help matters more than money.’
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