A centre of support for life and the family (CafVida) was inaugurated in recent days in the House of St. Zita at Braga. The centre is the result of joint collaboration between the archdiocese of Braga, the office for the pastoral care of the family and the secular institute of female family carers, already expressed over the last three years in the form of a “family solidarity” project. “We wish to provide integral assistance involving not just the defence and support of pregnancy, but also situations of conjugal conflict and the difficulties of couples to relate to their own children”, explained the directress of the centre, Manuela Caldeira: “In addition, we want to invest in formation and in courses regarding youth and family issues”. Since no funding of any kind has yet been pledged, the head of CafVida explained that “all its activities will be performed thanks to the volunteer service provided by lawyers, doctors, psychologists, social workers and priests”, so that “the lack of financial resources would not prevent the centre from operating on a permanent basis”. The centre can be contacted at any time, day or night, also by e-mail (cafvida@gmail.com): “our promise is to provide assistance, to listen, to welcome, to offer unconditional acceptance and understanding of the problems of anyone, to counsel, and if necessary direct the person to specialized professionals or other institutions in northern Portugal, thanks to whose partnership the project will be able to further develop”.
