The COVID-I9 pandemic has affected all of us more than any health crisis in our lifetime. This world-wide pandemic has wreaked havoc everywhere. But if anything positive has come out of this situation it has been the way people have come together to support each other. I am asking you to share that generosity with what might be considered members of our extended family.

Bergamo, Italy, in the Lombardy province has been one of our sister cities since 2005. It has a lot in common with Pueblo with a population of around 117,000, an economic history based in manufacturing, and a rich Italian culture. Italy has been hit hard by the coronavirus and Bergamo has been the epicenter. At this time, close to 140,000 cases of the disease have been confirmed in Italy with 53,000 cases centered in the Lombardy province.

In March of 2006, a delegation from Pueblo traveled to Bergamo as part of the Sister City Program. Some in Pueblo, still have friends there. Rotary#43, right here in Pueblo has launched a fund drive to help our sister city purchase much needed medical supplies for hospitals. I am asking our citizens to join the Rotary in this humanitarian effort. Checks can be sent to:

Pueblo Sister Cities Commission 
2402 Lakeview
Pueblo, Colorado, 81004
(Please write ‘Bergamo’ on memo line.)

Be sure to write ’Bergamo’ in the memo line. Any amount, large or small, will help a city struggling to survive this horrible virus. Puebloans are showing that we are standing together in the face of this challenge. Let’s share that spirit with our friends in Bergamo and donate to the Rotary fund. We are all in this together, and together we will get through this.