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Being close to one another beyond distances

Jan 27, 2026

A friendship that links the two hemispheres and shows how goodness can set in motion a virtuous circle capable of reaching unexpected recipients and making them happy.

My name is Vida and for a few years now, I and others from the Lithuanian community have been supporting the family of Julia from Indonesia, whom I met in 2018 in Manila (Philippines) on the occasion of Genfest, the international meeting that brings together the young people of the Focolare Movement. Over this time, despite the distance, a sisterly relationship has developed between us. Her family lives in Medan and is part of the Focolare community there. We have been able to support them at various difficult moments and, it always surprised me and gave me joy that whenever they received help, they immediately thought of other people too.

Before Christmas Julia shared with me her desire to help the children in an orphanage. They needed pillows and mattresses as the flood had destroyed those they had. Since she is a very practical person, she had already worked out the amount needed. So I wrote to the Lithuanian community on our shared website, hoping that someone would be able to donate something. “I was amazed to see that in a short time we collected an even larger amount that I immediately sent to Julia who did everything she could to make the children happy. As well as the mattresses and pillows, for the first time, they also had a Christmas tree

Vida Laniauskaite

Photo: © Pexels on Pixabay

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