The good pays off

In 1892, a magistrate from Turin was confronted with two boys of about twelve accused of wandering and theft: "They were handsome, lively, robust, with intelligent and cunning eyes, and yet as a whole they designated a good disposition . For several years they had found themselves on the streets, orphans, without any education. They did not remember having parents and their memory was limited to the beating one of them received from a drunk man, perhaps his father. The other had the confused memory of a hag, probably his mother, who left him languishing with hunger, and excited him to go to the markets to steal ... ».

The man's name is Luigi Martini, and from this meeting an institution was born that still exists in Turin, the Beneficial House for young derelicts. The idea is to prevent criminal acts with education, thus contributing to the common good. The magistrate reveals the heart of a father: "I called the institution I longed for in my mind and soul home, because it seemed to me to better express the concept of a shelter in which intense affection and the family environment lingered. for those real human victims ". In opposition to the thought of Cesare Lombroso, who supported the theory of the born criminal, Martini affirmed that" man is not born evil, bad, he becomes evil. It all depends on the environment in which he lives, on the education he is given, on the example he receives ». In 1889 he founded, with the help of prestigious Turin personalities, the Beneficial House for young derelicts.

First headquarters, his home, in the Porta Palazzo area, and then found its final location in the Cit Turin district. Many boys and girls were sent to study and work thanks to the generosity of the Turinese. The adventure of the Charitable continues today, with different methods but the intent is the same: to offer a prompt welcome to minors who for whatever reason are in a state of moral or material need, helping them to grow and prepare a future, with the hope that the day will come when institutions, communities and the like will no longer be needed, because every child will have a real family.


Annamaria Gobbato
NP November 2021