From the time he was a young child, Blessed Carlo Acutis showed a great love of the poor — a devotion followed him over the course of his short life all the way to his place of burial in Assisi, Italy.
This week, the city of Assisi, home of St. Francis, is hosting events to celebrate the second anniversary of Acutis’s beautification, leading up to his feast day on October 10. One of the special events will be the opening of a soup kitchen dedicated to his memory.
According to Vatican News, the soup kitchen will open in the center of the city and “operate in synergy with the 'Casa Papa Francesco' shelter in the neighbourhood of the Santa Maria degli Angeli Basilica.”
It is a fitting way to honor Blessed Carlo, whose mother has said he served the poor from a young age. As reported in CNA, his mother remembers him buying sleeping bags for the homeless and bring them hot drinks, as well as giving up extra clothing items of his own to those who had less.
The Italian teen who loved soccer, playing video games, and sharing his faith online volunteered his time at a soup kitchen in Milan that is run by the Capuchins and Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity. He died of leukemia on October 12, 2006, at the age of 15.
