The honorary certificate “Alfiere della Repubblica” was awarded at the Quirinal Palace to student Giulia Martinello
On 24 February, the Head of State, Sergio Mattarella, welcomed the 30 young people he had appointed to the Quirinal Standard-bearers of the Republic, an honour conferred through a “Certificate of Honour” to reward those underage young people who, through their behaviour or attitudes, represent a model of a good citizen. This year, among those who received the prestigious recognition, there is Giulia Martinello, a student on the “Sirio” course who is currently attending the Military Aeronautics School “G. Douhet” in Florence.
The certificate of honour was awarded for having participated as a volunteer in a scout camp in Vareš, one of the municipalities of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina that still feels the consequences of the war, where she was able to carry out various activities in favour of the local population.
Giulia, 18, is in her final year of classical high school at the school “G. Douhet”and she has always been very active in the field of volunteering: “I have always had the desire to help others, to make myself available to them, and for this reason I have always done charity work and looked for paths that could allow me to grow while cultivating this intention of mine.
It was precisely the desire to serve the community that drove Giulia to try for the Military Aeronautics high school entrance exam: “Entering the Douhet was a simple choice for me: the School's aim is not only to shape us as students, but also to help us grow as good citizens, with solid values to follow and put into practice.”
An undertaking, that of Giulia, also highlighted by the words of the School Commandant, Colonel Massimiliano Macioce, who acknowledges how Giulia “has always distinguished herself for academic excellence, generosity towards her peers and her leadership skills, so much so that she indeed earned the role of Course Leader of the Sirio course”
The Military Aeronautics School “G. Douhet” in Florence was inaugurated in 2006 and is an upper secondary education institute that runs the courses of the final three years in the classical and scientific streams. At the School G. Douhet Admission is by public competition and the Institute's aim is to foster the human, cultural, moral and physical development of its pupils so that they may become good citizens and face the challenges of tomorrow, regardless of the future life choices each of them will make.
Below is the full text of the motivation available on the Quirinale website:
Giulia Martinello, 30/5/2004, resident in San Pietro in Gu (PD) – For the voluntary service provided to a community in Bosnia which, years later, has still not managed to forget the horror of war. A testament to practical solidarity, carried out by giving up her summer holiday.
Giulia has always been very active in her local community, as a scout and as an educator in after-school activities for younger children. At the age of 15, she entered the “Giulio Douhet” Military Aeronautics School in Florence. Although the school's activities are very intense, Giulia decided to use her summer holidays to make herself available to those in the greatest need. She participated as a volunteer in a scout camp in Vareš, one of the municipalities in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina that still bears the heavy scars of the war. During this experience, she tirelessly served the local population to alleviate difficult social situations, teaching and entertaining local children through play, helping women and the elderly, and even undertaking the humblest tasks to restore rooms and facilities in local infrastructures.
