College student develops international internship

Intermountain Catholic

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Anthony LaGuardia (left) receives the official document from Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon to establish a sister county with Piedmonte, Italy, at the same time as with Torino, Salt Lake City's sister city.IC photo courtesy of Anthony LaGuardia

SALT LAKE CITY — Anthony LaGuardia spent his summer vacation in Torino, Italy, as an intern involved in a sister city relationship. He worked as a volunteer in an organization operated under the Catholic Church which offers social services to young people and adults.

"Mayor Sergio Chiamparino from Torino was in Salt Lake City during the 2002 Winter Olympic Games, and it was he whom I turned the Olympic flag over to for the 2006 Olympics," said Mayor of Salt Lake City Ross C. "Rocky" Anderson at Ferragosto Aug. 18.

Ferragosto was an Italian street fair hosted by Ed and Jinger LaGuardia of the Italian Center of the West in Salt Lake City.

"We delivered a message on peace, youth, and the environment, from Salt Lake City to Torino without the use of any fossil fuels," said Mayor Anderson. "I returned for the 2006 Olympics and spent more time with Mayor Chiamparino, discussing a sister city agreement, and it has since been signed, sealed, and delivered by Anthony LaGuardia in July."

"My objective during my internship in Torino was to develop international student exchange projects through Utah State University, where I am a senior, in association with the Italian Center of the West," said LaGuardia. "I traveled to Italy to develop volunteer work to become the basis of the internship opportunities for students. Before I left I was given documents from both Mayor Anderson and Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon to deliver to the respective mayors in Italy. I also met with Dr. Giovanni G. Maschero, Vice Consulate of Italy at the Italian Center of the West, who supervised my internship in Salt Lake City.

"Upon arriving in Torino, I met with Dr. Adriano Comollo, director of the Italian Center of the West and the supervisor of my internship in Italy," said LaGuardia. "Dr. Comollo lined me up with the opportunity to work at the redeveloped Armory, the Sermig, or Arsenal of Peace in Torino. It serves not only as a meeting point for young people, but also offers humanitarian aid to people all over the world.

"The man who fostered the association in the Sermig and all its humanitarian objectives is Ernesto Olivero," said LaGuardia. "Ernesto was a Catholic and wealthy banker in Italy, who decided in his later years to turn his efforts to the goal of helping mankind spread the message of peace to the world.

"Ernesto convinced other people to get involved including the province to donate 80 percent of the lot to develop the Sermig" said LaGuardia. "The Sermig was originally the largest armory in all of Italy during World War II. Most of the people who work there are nuns and monks. It was based on a scripture in the Bible which says God will use instruments of war as instruments of peace. The Sermig is filled with symbolsim. It has a chapel in which the Tabernacle is made out of the oven door where they used to make bullets. They turned everything that was used to make weapons into symbols of peace."

LaGuardia said the Sermig offers the homeless free medical, dental, and optical care twice a week, shelter for up to 150 homeless people each night for one Euro, or about $1.33, food, clothing, and a trade.

"If they let people stay there for free, it would be a handout instead of a helping hand," said LaGuardia. "They train people through different workshops in mosaic art, art and furniture restoration, and oil painting so they in turn can earn a living."

LaGuardia spent time cleaning the facility so people would have a nice place to stay, and sorting donated clothing to make sure they were only gently used and did not display a military connection. The clothing that was not given away, was either sent to the less fortunate people in Africa, or sold to be used for rags. The buttons, elastic, and zippers were also sold so that nothing was wasted.

LaGuardia also gave guitar lessons, played the guitar during the daily Mass, and greeted new arrivals. He said another goal of the Sermig was to be a place where young people between the ages of 15 and 25 could come and meet each other to learn and share their ideas. They were usually from a program like the Boy Scouts of Italy.

"There would be a new group of up to 300 young people each week who would come and volunteer in the morning and have a workshop in the evening. Their activities included speakers, the March of Peace, and songs celebrating God. They also had the dinner of the people in which they would role play different scenarios of what children around the world are actually experiencing in war torn countries posed against children of affluence. They would see how differently people lived, and appreciate what they have.

"This experience opened my eyes," said LaGuardia. "I could not have imagined a place like this. It changed my thinking and gave me a positive feeling about caring for and helping others."

Before leaving, LaGuardia met with the mayors and their staffs, who were excited about the sister city relationship.

"The one really important pre-requisite of a sister city relationship is that we have people in the community who will sustain it over time," said Mayor Anderson. "This relationship is not done just by city government, it takes the community to follow through. A vital part is Ferragosto and the wonderful job the LaGuardias, the Italian Center of the West, and their staff and volunteers have done year after year to share the Italian-American community in Utah with us."

LaGuardia will graduate next spring with a degree in Interdisciplinary Skills in music and business. He plays the guitar in the band Ultimate with a record label his group created called The Collective Intelligence. Their website is www.collectiveintelligence.com.