After cycling across half of Europe and in 2018 the Via Francigena del Nord, from Canterbury to Aosta, this year Renato and Alessandro from ReAl Bike Experience will be representatives of AIMUSE, the Italian Selective Mutism Association, along the Italian Via Francigena from Aosta to Rome.
The Via Francigena is a path that from the north-west goes south and owes its name to the practice of pilgrimages to Rome in the Carolingian period, during the Holy Roman Empire of Charlemagne, King of the Franks. “CorreVoce” is an important project supporting Aimuse, which for 10 years has been working to promote and raise awareness of selective mutism, a response to a strong emotional state linked to social anxiety that blocks speech.
Elisa Marchio, National President of AIMUSE, says “selective mutism is a disorder little known today, which affects children by preventing them from talking to people who aren’t in their close family circle.” The association works with its regional referents across the whole national territory offering its support to families experiencing this hardship. “We are a point of reference not only for parents, but also for teachers who face this problem in the school context.”
Alessandro and Renato will cover more than 1,000km with over 10,000 metres of elevation gain, following in the footsteps of Sigerico the Sassone who in 990 d.c. embarked on a journey back from Rome to Canterbury (there is no trace of his outward journey), after having received the “Pallium”, the papal investiture of primate of the Anglican church.
Renato Martin underlines “In 2018 we travelled the entire Via Francigena del Nord, from Canterbury up to Aosta, crossing the English Channel, the whole of France and part of Switzerland, going up to the Gran San Bernardo pass at 2,450 metres. With this new adventure we’ll start where we left off.“
The “CorreVoce” project has already obtained the EAVF’s (European Association of Via Francigena Ways) support, which immediately embraced the initiative and granted the use of its brand, the medieval pilgrim with Bordone or Bacelum, a long long wooden stick used to support and defend oneself. Alessandro Martin adds, “This idea was born from our desire to connect the Via Francigena, a way of meeting and sharing, with AIMUSE, through a series of seminars and conferences, one per region along the entire journey from Valle D’Aosta to Piedmont and Lombardy, from Emilia Romagna to Tuscany to Lazio“.
Sections: a campaign will be organised to raise awareness and information on selective mutism through conferences/in-depth meetings: 30.09 Aosta Correvove Valle D’Aosta, 01.10 Ivrea / Biella CorreVoce Piedmont, 03.10 Pavia CorreVoce Lombardy, 04.10 Fidenza CorreVoce Emilia Romagna, 07.10 Lucca CorreVoce Tuscany, 13.10 Rome final stage CorreVoce Lazio.
Everything will take place in the first two weeks of October, with the aim of raising awareness and spreading the knowledge of selective mutism. www.aimuse.it
Source: press release – Download the poster below
