The head of state, Sergio Mattarella, welcomed the 24 young people he had nominated at the Quirinale on 30 February Standard bearers of the Republic, an honor conferred through a "Certificate of Honor" to reward those young minors who, for behavior or attitudes, represent a model of good citizen. This year, among those who received the prestigious award, there is Giulia Martinello, a student of the "Sirio" course who is currently attending the Aeronautical Military School “G. Douhet” in Florence.
The certificate of honor was awarded for having participated as a volunteer in a scout camp in Vareš, one of the municipalities of the Federation of Bosnia Herzegovina which still suffers from the consequences of the war, where she was able to carry out various activities in favor of the local population.
Giulia, 18, is in the last year of classical high school at the “G. Douhet” and has always been very active in the field of volunteering: “I have always had the will to help others, to make myself available to others and for this reason I have always carried out charitable activities and looked for paths that could allow me to grow by cultivating this intention of mine”.
It was precisely the desire to put oneself at the service of the community that prompted Giulia to try the competition for the Air Force high school: “Entering Douhet was a simple choice for me: the goal of the School is not only to train us as students, but also to make us grow as good citizens, with solid values to follow and put into practice.”
A commitment, that of Giulia, also underlined by the words of the commander of the School, Colonel Massimiliano Macioce, who acknowledges that Giulia "has always stood out for profit in the study, for the generosity towards her colleagues and for her leadership skills, so much so that she deserved the role of course leader of the Sirio course."
The “G. Douhet” in Florence was inaugurated in 2006 and is a secondary school which carries out the courses of the last three years in the classical and scientific fields. Access to the G. Douhet School is by public competition and the purpose of the Institute is to take care of the human, cultural, moral and physical formation of the students, so that they can become good citizens and face the challenges of tomorrow, regardless of their life choices future that each of them will make.
Below is the complete text of the motivation available on the Quirinale website:
Giulia Martinello, 30/5/2004, residing in San Pietro in Gu (PD) – For the voluntary service provided in favor of a Bosnian community which, years later, has still not managed to forget the horror of war. A testimony of concrete solidarity, achieved by giving up the summer holiday period.
Giulia has always been very active in her community, as a scout and as an educator in after-school activities for the little ones. At the age of 15 you entered the "Giulio Douhet" military aeronautical school in Florence. Although school activities are very intense, Giulia has decided to use the days of the summer holidays to make herself available to those who need it most. She participated as a volunteer in a scout camp in Vareš, one of the municipalities of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina which is still very heavily affected by the consequences of the war. During this experience she did her utmost to serve the local population to alleviate difficult social situations, teaching and entertaining the local children with games, helping women and the elderly, up to carrying out the most menial jobs for the restoration of premises and infrastructure environments.
