The refurbished male quarters at the San Blas Therapeutic Community Centre were inaugurated by BOV chair Deo Scerri, Marigold Foundation chair and co-founder Michelle Muscat and Caritas Malta director Anthony Gatt.
The quarters, which provide a safe and secure environment for individuals following residential drug rehabilitation, underwent a complete transformation through the support of Bank of Valletta and The Marigold Foundation - BOV in the Community.
The building and its facilities have been offering shelter for persons in recovery for over 30 years and were in dire need of an overhaul. BOV together with Marigold Foundation stepped in to provide financial assistance to transform and modernise the dilapidated men’s quarters of the San Blas residents who can now follow their programmes in a more dignified environment.
Anthony Gatt, on behalf of the board of directors, staff of Caritas Malta and residents, expressed his heartfelt appreciation for Bank of Valletta and the Marigold Foundation for making this project a reality.
“The San Blas Therapeutic Centre offers a safe haven for our residents who require holistic rehabilitation, enabling them to heal and grow psychologically, emotionally and socially,” he said.
“Apart from having a positive and therapeutic impact on the psychology of our residents, the refurbished premises now have more capacity, allowing us to reach out to more individuals requiring rehabilitation. This support has also allowed us to have a residence that is of the highest social care standards and provides full accessibility”.
The refurbished premises now have more capacity
Major refurbishment works, which started out last April, have now been completed to high standards and communal dormitories were transformed in more private quarters. The quarters were decked out with new furniture and colourful furnishings and each room has its own bathroom facilities. Following the inauguration, guests were shown around the premises.
Michelle Muscat said that since the founding of the Marigold Foundation, this is the third project that the foundation has carried out in the San Blas Therapeutic Community Centre. This project was also made possible through funds raised by the Marigold Swimming Challenge which has been an annual effort on the part of the foundation and Muscat and through the contribution of the BOV chair, directors, staff and customers.
“This collective effort made it possible to change this place into a state-of-the-art drug rehabilitation centre. The residents of this centre are an inspiration to the foundation to continue with its work to make the community around us a better place to live,” Muscat said.
The project was fully funded by the Marigold Foundation – BOV in the Community, with additional financial support from Bank of Valletta. Throughout the year, BOV raised funds through various initiatives that were held in aid of Caritas. These included the cards for charity campaign through which BOV made a monetary donation for every time customers effected a purchase using their BOV cards and a dress-down day with staff donating money to wear casual clothes. Members of the BOV board of directors and a number of bank executives also donated their remuneration from directorships.
“Caritas depends heavily on the generosity of our community to be able to offer its assistance and support to those requiring its services. Our relationship with Caritas goes back for many years, we have always believed that, as the local bank, we should be at the forefront in supporting the well-being of our society,” said Deo Scerri.
“We are proud of having been instrumental in making this project a reality. All of us at BOV chipped in, be it our directors, executives, employees and customers. I must here pay tribute to our ex-CEO Mario Mallia who sadly passed away last week. He was instrumental in seeing this project through his direct and personal commitment. I am honoured to say that together, we helped in shaping the future of the San Blas residents and the Maltese community at large.”