My name is Ali Jubran, I am 30 years old and from Libya. I arrived in Italy in 2020, seeking safety, with the hope of a better life. For two years I lived in a reception center in Rome, but as the time to get out of there approached, a great fear grew inside me: facing life alone, with no points of reference. It seemed impossible!

It was in that moment of uncertainty that I discovered Casa Scalabrini 634. Of the first time I entered it, I have an image that I still remember: I was in the classroom, ready for the free driving school course, when I smelled an intense and familiar smell of food coming from the kitchen. I asked myself, “Is it school here or family?” I asked a friend and he told me that this was not just a school, but a real migrant home. An open, living place where the community met, helped each other and grew together.

That explanation ignited something in me. It was different from everything I had experienced so far. When I learned that I would soon be leaving the shelter, I knew that Casa Scalabrini had come at the right time: a sign, an opportunity not to be missed!

After some conversations with Chiara and the House team, I was offered the opportunity to live there. Thus began my new journey, which I can say without hesitation has been the most important one since I arrived in Italy.

At Casa Scalabrini I found much more than a roof: I found respect, humanity and sharing. I loved the activities with the other guests, the convivial times with the volunteers who often joined us to eat together. It was a welcoming place, a real Home. For the first time in a long time, I felt at home, like in Libya.

When I left Scalabrini House, I carried with me a new energy and deep gratitude. I had learned so much, especially about opening up and listening. I had met people who truly cared for others and listened to the stories of migrants like me. That is why, even after a year and a half, I often go back to see them.

I enjoy seeing the operators again, meeting the new kids and telling them about my experience. It gives me strength to know that I can be of help to those who are still finding their way to independence.

Today I live alone, work and have found my own stability. But the greatest lesson that Casa Scalabrini has left me with is courage: the courage to live in community, to open up to others, to create bonds, even when life makes you face difficult challenges. Thanks to this rediscovered courage, I decided to take a course as a language and cultural mediator and to devote myself to theater, a way to express myself and to bring people together.

My dreams for the future?
To be able to return one day to my land in Libya and find a place of peace. I would like to be able to live a community life there too, close to my family, like the one I experienced here.

My wish for Scalabrini House today as it turns 10 years old?
My wish is simple and sincere: that more and more such places may be born, because every migrant person deserves to find a true Home on his or her journey.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart, Scalabrini House 634!