Sítio Botuquara, the headquarters of the Alliance of Mercy in São Paulo, hosted a meeting on Wednesday (2) to celebrate a concrete partnership in favor of the most vulnerable. Founders and volunteers of the Ilumina Institute and the Alliance gathered for a lunch of gratitude for the action carried out throughout the month of September, which resulted in the collection of approximately R$ 700 thousand destined to support social projects of the Catholic institution.

The Ilumina Institute is a solidarity initiative that organizes bazaars and auctions of clothes, shoes and other items through WhatsApp groups, with the goal of allocating resources to various charitable organizations. Each month, a new institution is chosen to receive the funds raised, and in September, the Aliança de Misericórdia was the beneficiary. The result exceeded all expectations: it was the largest fundraising effort ever recorded since the Institute's founding.

“Our goal is to find organizations that need support — and there are many in Brazil — and provide them with as many resources as possible through our work.”, explained Patrícia Spinelli, administrator and one of the founders of Ilumina.

According to her, the auctioned pieces are donated and put up for sale in online groups, in a dynamic that transforms detachment into opportunity. "The volunteers from the beneficiary institution are also directly involved, seeking donations and participating in sales management. It's a collective effort.", he completed.

Partnership that bears fruit

The founders of the Institute — Patrícia Spinelli, Bárbara Jalles, Isabel Foz and Tanise Dutra — participated in the meeting in Botuquara, alongside volunteers from the Alliance who led the action during the month: Patrícia Neuding, Fernanda Vidigal, Livia Leão, Maria Eduarda Ramos, Daniela Silveira, Ana Paula Vianna, Maria Cury and Juliana Lewkowicz.

The choice of Aliança as the beneficiary institution arose from the bond built over the last few months. “I discovered the Alliance through Lívia and I was always impressed by the breadth of the work they do, not only in the material aspect, but also in the spiritual aspect,” said Barbara Jalles. "The world needs God, and the Alliance brings this presence to people's hearts. That's why we support it."

The meeting was attended by Father João Henrique, founder of the Alliance of Mercy, who expressed gratitude to the volunteers. In his message, he noted that the initiative goes beyond supporting the institution: “You didn’t help the Covenant, you helped the poor—and in doing so, you welcomed Christ himself. Whatever you did to one of these little ones, you did to him.”, he said, quoting the Gospel.

For Bia Hauptmann, Director of Institutional Relations at the Alliance, the lunch was a way to give back, through presence and sharing, the generosity received. "Our desire was for each of them to feel embraced by heaven. The work was intense and transformative, and we wanted this moment to be a concrete thank you for everything they did throughout September."

The partnership, which already begins with a historic fundraising milestone, is expected to extend to future initiatives. "It was a record at Ilumina, and I'm sure this union will continue. It's a bond that the Holy Spirit created and that will not be broken," concluded Barbara.

The Alliance of Mercy expresses its deep gratitude to the Ilumina Institute, its founders, and all the volunteers involved in this initiative. Every donation and every dedicated effort this September makes it possible to carry forward our commitment to the most vulnerable and keep alive the mission of proclaiming God's mercy through human advancement!