On 9th of October, 2016, Mr. Stefano Piotti, the Steph Foundation Chairman has been invited, as the main speaker at Beauty for Purpose Charity Gala Ball – 2016.

The theme of the Ball was Essences of Charity.

The hosts of the event: Nigerian Queens 2016 Winners.

The Chairman received an Award in recognition of his continuous, humanitarian and selfless services for the people from Nigerian Queen Organization.

Photo Gallery from Event

Topic: WHAT IS CHARITY AND ITS ESSENCES

Distinguished Guest

Ladies, Gentlemen and the Organizing Team

I am honored to be invited as a speaker in a charity event with this quality of audience. It is my pleasure to speak about charity which is something I have passion for.

Definition of charity:

1. It is an act of kindness where a person who has more than enough of what he or she needs contributes a part of his or her surplus income for the fulfillment of the needs of those who are less capable.
2. An organization set up to provide help and raise money for those in need.
3. The voluntary giving of help, typically in the form of money, to those in need.
4. Kindness and tolerance in judging others
5. The theological virtue defined as love directed first toward God but also toward oneself and one’s neighbors as objects of God’s love.

Etymology:

Form the old Latin: cāritās, affection

What is a charity Organization?

A charity is a voluntary organization which is set up in order to do well. Charities aim not only to help and support people but also animals, the environment, etc. In size they range from small, local organizations (which provide support on a local basis and are usually staffed by unpaid volunteers drawn from the immediate area) to large, international organizations who have salaried professionals working for them as well as a global network of volunteers. Such organizations provide support on an international basis and deal with global problems.

There goes a famous saying “Charity begins at home.” This is an old saying with a deep hidden meaning inside. This means that it is not enough to contribute good and money to the charitable organization alone. If your own grandmother is lying on the bed and you do not serve her and instead are interested in helping a charitable organization, you surely do not understand the true meaning of charity.

What do charities do?

Charities have a variety of roles in the world today covering almost every aspect of human life. They provide food, medicine, bandages, prosthetic limbs, vaccination programmes, neo-natal care, water, irrigation systems, school-teachers, shelters, blankets, shoes, clothing and much, much more. They work hard to raise public awareness of the problems faced by many people in the world today and to raise money to meet the basic requirements of those in need. Many charities also respond promptly in disaster situations, sending emergency supplies to the worst-hit areas with impressive speed.

Other charities work in less dramatic surroundings, quietly looking after the elderly and infirm, supporting the terminally ill and caring for the depressed, suicidal and the mentally ill.

Charity as a matter of fact is a very wide phenomenon that cannot be described in words. It is said that if you give someone something, you get ten times in return. But this saying is incomplete; the truth is that if you give someone something with a pure heart, expecting nothing in return you will surely get more than ten time in return.

Speech

Today, we are often constrained to our own domestic affairs. We think of our own future, with hopes at the time of recession. But when we are in trouble, people in developing countries suffer from the crisis much, much more. They have to fight for their everyday needs. But they have few resources to struggle against their extreme poverty.

The most unprotected circles of African society are kids and single mothers. We regularly visit orphanages. It frightens us to see how kids are in need, but this also inspires us more.

Life is so beautiful. God presents us with this gift of life not to suffer from what we can have as our right, proper education, Health care protection, development of our talents.

Our mutual efforts and our support are much needed. Together, we will fulfill our duty of cherishing every human life.

The charitable sector is an important and fascinating one, economically, socially and culturally. Every one of the world’s great religions emphasizes the moral imperative of charitable giving. There is no code of ethics, whether religiously based or secular, that does not mandate the strong to look after the weak. In St. Paul’s great ‘ode’, in 1 Corinthians, 13, caritas, or charity, is placed even above faith and hope.

My personal appreciation of the importance of charity comes from the Christian-family background that shaped me.

My family taught me that there are no owners, only custodians; that from those to whom much has been given, much will be asked; that charity is a duty, not a whim or a personal indulgence.

What is perhaps surprising, but certainly encouraging, is that others arrive at the same conclusions from very different starting positions. The charitable imperative transcends the usual divisions and pigeon holes: left-center-right, radical-conservative, Christian-Jew-Muslim- Buddhist-Hindu or secular Humanist. Perhaps there is a charitable gene in all of us. It would make sense, since charity has great social survival value.

While the appreciation of the importance of charity and giving is universal, it isn’t always easy. You may be familiar with the sad story of the final communist party membership examination of comrade Ivan Ivanov in the days of the former Soviet Union.

The final test involved giving the correct answer to three questions:

“Comrade Ivanov, if you had three yachts, what would you do?”

“Well, comrades, I would keep one and give two away, for the benefit of the proletariat

Giving out some of the hard earned money, it is definitely a very difficult thing. But if we do I assure you we will definitely be rewarded.

Charity is also done for religious purposes; it just depends on where your interest lies in donating. It is estimated that one should give at least 10% of his or her profits in charity or donation. This fact has been shared in one of the most famous books about money management named “The Richest Man in Babylon” written by George S. Clason about 1926. Just spending your money on yourself and your family and living a life full of material pleasures will not give you the peace of mind that you need. The moment you know that your little deed of charity has brought a smile to someone’s face is the moment you will achieve that peace of mind which you truly desire from the bottom of your heart.

How charity changed my life

About Steph Foundation

Steph Foundation was born out of the desire to help the less privileged. It was incorporated in January 2015 but actually started activities in 2012. Below are headlines of few things done by Steph Foundation:

• 2012/2013 Theme
  • Educational sponsorship of children from five different families
  • Payment of medical bills for a sick cell patient till date
• 2014 Theme:
  • Up-keep
  • Widows/Children empowerment (skill acquisition)
  • Medical bills
• 2015 Theme:
  • Youth empowerment & community development
  • Treatment for Cancer patient
  • Surgery for Hernia
• 2016 Theme
  • Up-Keep
  • Water supply to communities
  • Two Surgeries
  • Screening & prevention of Prostate Specific Antigen for 20 men
  • Screening & Prevention of Cervical Cancer for 16 Ladies (Pap Smear Test)
  • Educational Sponsorship
• 2017 Theme:
  • Non profit activities for development
  • Open heart surgery at Gaslini Hospital in Italy

Taking Charity to the next level

I believe that the real meaning of Charity derives from sympathy which meaning is “Suffer Together with You”. Therefore Charity is Passion, Passion for life, Passion for the people.

If we have passion for people the real thing we have to do if we want to make charity an important part of our lives is to understand the real need of a large part of the population in Nigeria that is getting a job and providing for their needs

“Give a man a fish and you will feed him for a day, teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime”.

Obviously this does not absolve us from solving daily pressing problems of other people.

So what is the next step in charity in Nigeria today?   Be good citizens, therefore invest, create jobs, spread wealth, allow people to live with dignity   allow children’s talents to develop, this is the kind of charity Nigeria mostly needs today and as good citizens we must stand firm and give our own contribution to uplift the lives of so many people affected by the current economic downturn.

Charity can be the message. A strong political message, charity can be the tool that will make all of us be active engines of changes. Charity will also improve your life as it will make you feel action to promote a better society,, knowing that we live in a country that is blessed with so many talented people and vast resources.  

Nigerian economy has gone through a lot and needs to be rebuilt with our hands, with the hand of everybody we can do it and we must do it.

So to conclude, charity is power, the power to change the world and make it a better place to be, where diversity is respected and unity is sought, where love and kindness are spread around and none is left alone.

We must show with example that humanity has nothing to do with bombing, killing, raping, destroying, we must show that love exists and it is real.

Quote:

“Let us not be satisfied with just giving money. Money is not enough, money can be got, but they need your hearts to love them. So, spread your love everywhere you go.”

– Mother Teresa