The Saturday night of Pretoria's Sant'Egidio youth with the poor: story of a contagious solidarity

On Saturday at Sunnyside, suburbs of Pretoria, there are many homeless people who reach the parish of St. Martin de Porres for the dinner with the Community of Sant'Egidio. Friendship with the poor of Sunnyside began years ago with the distribution of food to some people at the corners of the streets, but then, as often happens, solidarity is contagious: the number of those who wanted to help in distribution increased, also the number of those who support with small donations the work of this group of young Africans friends of the poor increased too.

At present, the Community in Sunnyside gathers every Saturday evening at St. Martin de Porres church premises, where it offers dinner for about 150 homeless friends, people of different ages, from 20 to 60 years old, many South Africans, some from Zimbabwe. An important appointment that even the Archbishop of Pretoria Msgr. William Slattery did not want to miss, as he served dinner with volunteers of the Community of Sant'Egidio.