School is out, and so is AGAPE

Agape does not operate its program for differently abled adults during the summer, but they always have a party in June, and I usually go to see my friends their, as well as their parents. I have chosen the picture above as the cover picture, partly because his mother asked me to, and partly because I could never get him to smile no matter what was happening, and neither could anyone else I know. Finally, his sad face reminds me of the sadness that all the clients seem to feel as they sense that they will see each other far less often over the next few months. The smiles on the staff faces, however, were real. They need, and are looking forward to some time off, even if the time off is taking a job in the summer tourist industry here.


Of course my buddy smiles no matter where he is or what he is doing, and it is his lightness of spirit that I most enjoy about going to AGAPE.

I suppose I should say something about why AGAPE is so important to me. First of all, I suppose, it is because I worked in special education for so many years, and indeed I do in some measure owe the happiness of my retirement to the years of work I put in with differently abled people.

Secondly, Paolo's daughter is a client.

But I think the most important reason is that it is truly a grass roots movement in a land that has few functioning grass roots movements. It is a great advocacy organization, and the parents continue to lobby the government for more services for this needing adult population. They have managed to get a good facility from the hospital (while it is barely on hospital grounds, it is set apart, so does not take on the aspect of a medical facility), wheedled a van from the some agency so clients not able to get to AGAPE on their own could be picked up, and have enlisted the services of speech/language, psychological, and therapeutic professionals beyond what the government will pay for. They maintain a large and active volunteer staff, including two master ceramicists from Sciacca, one of whom is the president of the ceramicist guild. On Sunday mornings they are in the parents and clients are in the main plaza selling the ceramic production of the clients to further support AGAPE.

I wish clients and staff a relaxing and envigorating summer.