Dear friends of the Order of Malta,

With the enchanting smile of this child from our last summer camp in Romania, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to you in this reflective pre-Christmas time. Over the past year, your generosity and donations have enabled us to continue our mission: To give the Roma communities hope, dignity and a future.

Through your donations, your active support and your prayers, we were able to realise numerous projects. This year, our work focussed on education and healthcare – two cornerstones that open up new prospects for so many children, women and men. Here are just a few of the many steps that were possible thanks to you:

Education for the youngest: we were able to equip schools and learning centres and fund teachers who are paving the way out of poverty every day.

Healthcare: Mobile clinics brought medical help to remote areas where care would otherwise be almost impossible.

Social integration: Through numerous programmes and workshops, we have built bridges, broken down prejudices and promoted dialogue.

Every child who can read today, every person who has received medical help and every family who has been given a perspective is also thanks to your donation and support. You are part of this journey and part of the change.

Every child who can read today, every person who has received medical help and every family who has been given a perspective is also because of your donation and support. You are part of this journey and part of the change.

Christmas is the feast of charity and hope. In the birth of Christ, we see a sign of peace and humanity that motivates us to stand up for one another. Your commitment and your great willingness to help are a living testimony to these values for us.

For the coming year, we ask you to continue to stand by our side. Together we can achieve even more – bring more light into the darkness, bring more hope into the hearts of many people.

I wish you and your families a blessed Christmas and a healthy, happy New Year.

With heartfelt thanks and gratitude,

Dr. Franz Salm

Ambassador at Large for Roma People