At the Pope’s public meeting on Wednesday in the courtyard of the Vatican, there was a figure that stood out: he was a young man in the costume of a well-known comic book character Spider-Man. The “Rome Observer” reported the story of this young man that afternoon. His life experience was intertwined with many hospitalized children. In addition, the Pope also greeted a 95-year-old grandmother. Accompanied by her grandson, this old woman who succeeded in fighting the epidemic came to the Vatican to meet the Pope.
(Vatican News Network)Spider-Man is really a kind superhero. He is usually an ordinary clerk in the company, but as soon as he puts on his hood and the Spider-Man costume, he transforms into a pistachio to accompany the hospitalized children. On June 23, during a public reception on Wednesday, the Spider-Man not only presented the hood of a superhero to Pope Francis, but also “revealed” his identity to the Pope. He is 28-year-old Mattia Villardita, and his next task is to go to the pediatric ward of Gemelli General Hospital. This is an event promoted by the Italian Public Security Inspection Agency in the Vatican, and the Italian National Police Band also participated. Veradita said: “The real superheroes are the suffering children and their families. They fight hard with unparalleled hope.”
Veradita talked about her own experience. He said: “I put on the spider-man costume to make the sick children in the hospital smile: I did this because I was suffering from a congenital disease. I have been in and out of the Genoa Children’s Hospital many times over the past 19 years. And I was alone when I was a child. When I was lying on a hospital bed alone, I would be very happy if I could see a spider man crawling in through the window.” For this reason, Veradita became a spider man “in my heart” and joined the “superhero of the hospital aisle” “association. He explained: “We are a group of young people dedicated to volunteer service. They happen to be dressed in “hero” costumes, bringing some relaxed and cheerful moments to the pediatric ward. Four years ago, Christmas, I put on this hood for the first time: At that time I had to send a computer to the hospital, so I created some way to amuse those kids who were in the same situation as when I was a kid.”
Even during the lockdown period, the spider-man still fulfilled his duties. Veradita said, “I made more than 1,400 video calls during the period when I was unable to visit the patient in person.” Veradita is concerned about the situation of sick children and keeps in touch with their parents, even if they are discharged home from the hospital. not excluded. The spiderman said: “We have a surprise party, or in a simpler way, we send a pizza to our door.”
Last year, Italian President Mattarella awarded the Medal of Honor to Villadita, on the grounds that “he made imaginative innovations for the benefit of others and contributed a lot to alleviating the suffering of the youngest hospitalized children.” The perfect definition of a superhero may be “trying to make the world a better place.”
After meeting the Pope, the spider-man went to Gemelli Hospital in the afternoon to visit patients with fibromyalgia and the medical staff and pastoral workers who took care of them. To this end, Pope Francis expressed his care and encouragement to the patients and medical staff of the Gemelli Hospital that morning.
In addition, the pope also greeted the 95-year-old grandmother Alba in the public reception that morning, accompanied by her grandson, she came to meet the pope with enthusiasm. Prior to this, she successfully fought the new crown epidemic. Her testimony is a highlight of World Grandparents and Seniors Day on July 25 this year.
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