Corri con Stefano 2021 English version

For children, "playing" with peers is a natural process.
For many children, throwing a ball, jumping and listening is simple, for children with autism or with other intellectual-relational disabilities it is not. The “Run with Stefano” project is designed for these children and offers them recreational sports activities led by experienced professionals. We at G.A.S.T. have been working with people with disabilities for 12 years and we strongly believe in this project. For the 3rd edition of “Corri con Stefano” we want to raise € 6,000 to guarantee the restart of the project in January 2021 and to allow at least 15 children aged 3 to 12 to make free use of 1 hour of physical activity per week for 6 months. The obstacles for these children are many, but if faced with positivity and enthusiasm they can be transformed into huge achievements of autonomy and well-being. We need your help. Your donation could really make a difference. Why? Because the children deserve it!

We are the G.A.S.T. Onlus and for 12 years we have been operating in the Reggio Emilia area with motor skills and sports activity projects for people with disabilities.

What is the “Corri con Stefano” project?

It all started in 2018 when Stefano, a great sportsman and supporter of G.A.S.T., decided to run for the special children of G.A.S.T. Thanks to that fundraising, in 2018 the “Corri con Stefano” project was born, thanks to which 40 children aged 3 to 13 with autism or other disabilities, relational-intellectual disabilities, benefited from 1 hour of physical activity in the gym for 1 year for free.

For 2020 our dream is to raise € 20,000 to complete the entire project, in favor of 45 autistic children, but by already collecting € 6,000 we can start the 3rd edition of "Run with Stefano" guaranteeing qualified personnel and reducing the quotas of personalized services.

With € 6,000, at least 15 children will benefit from 1 hour of physical activity in the gym once a week from January to June 2021.

Children will be supervised by instructors with degrees in physical education and specific training on disability and by other experienced professionals in the childcare sector, including psychologists, psychotherapists and educators. 

Why is this project so important to us?

Because after years of working with autistic children, we have seen how much sport can help them to direct their energies and acquire skills, become aware of their potential by gaining self-confidence and learn to relate to others.

Every special child is different and needs a great deal of attention and professionalism. We want to be able to guarantee personalized motor skills training in a protected environment and in a peaceful and fun atmosphere.

The activities proposed in the gym are designed to allow children to work on their motor skills through educational progressions in small steps.

The courses for younger children (3-6 years) are structured with basic motor content, to improve the physical capacities of a sense-perceptive type and general coordination skills typical of early childhood.

For older children (7-12 years) the courses have contents typical of pre-sports activities based on the organization and sequential internalization of movements and on the relationship with their peers.

We at G.A.S.T. we want to continue to stand by the families of these fantastic children.

Why are we asking for your help?

Because ours is an "All or Nothing" campaign. To make it happen we need to raise the entire budget!

Otherwise we will not be able to activate the 3rd edition of the project and we will not be able to give games and lots of smiles to our children.

We’d like to leave you with some key words that identify the project and the meaning they have for children with autism or with other intellectual-relational disabilities:

Learning by playing: improving awareness of one's body and one's cognitive-motor skills

Getting involved: improving skills, refining the perception of oneself, others and the surrounding environment

Relating to each other: acquiring the value of rules, learning how to use them to feel good in a group

The donations we will receive will be destined to cover the costs of the project,which are higher than in past editions due to Covid-19. To work safely, children will be divided into small groups; this change will impact both the number of operators to be involved and on the gym spaces to be used. Your financial support will cover the expenses for:

6 instructors with degrees in physical education with specific training, who will guide the children in these personalized small group courses.

Rental of properly equipped gyms for physical activity with disabled children. In particular, the activities will take place at the A-GYM in Reggio Emilia. To date, the other gyms of the Municipality of Reggio Emilia where the activity will take place are being defined.

Purchase of specific equipment and materials.

Without your help it will not be possible to respond to the many requests that come to us from the families of these children. Help us make them learn by jumping, running, having fun!