FC Barcelona has announced a collaboration with the Field Hospital of the Santa Anna Parish in Barcelona, under which the Club commits to donating a portion of the food produced daily at the Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper. This collaboration, coordinated by the Barça Foundation, was officially launched with a visit by FC Barcelona president Joan Laporta, accompanied by Dr Marta Segú, Director General of the Barça Foundation. On Thursday, they visited the Santa Anna parish Field Hospital in the heart of Barcelona, a centre that welcomes and supports people living in situations of social vulnerability and which, in 2017, became a symbol of care and refuge for the city’s most vulnerable residents.

This project is made possible thanks to Rotary ALPAN, to which the Barça Foundation donated a van twelve years ago to transport food, and to the social commitment of FC Barcelona’s catering provider, SANED, which has supplied all the necessary logistical support. Since the beginning of January, part of the catering prepared for the men’s senior football team and for the young players at La Masia has been allocated to the Santa Anna parish, with the aim of helping to meet the food needs of people in situations of extreme vulnerability, primarily homeless people.

Every day, a van with three volunteers collects the food from La Masia and from the first team dining facilities at the Ciutat Esportiva and transports it to the church, where it is distributed among the centre’s beneficiaries as part of one of the three daily meals offered.

A blaugrana contribution

The club’s food donation originated from a proposal by the Sports Commission to the Barça Foundation to donate part of the catering received by the players and the boys and girls at La Masia. Following this proposal, Dr Segú contacted ALPAN and SANED, and with the positive response of all parties involved, the donation to the Santa Anna parish was activated, yet another demonstration of the club's strong commitment to charity.

The Barça delegation was welcomed by the parish priest, the charismatic Father Peio Sánchez, who has led the Santa Anna social programme since 2017 and is one of the driving forces behind this initiative. Guided by Father Peio, the president and the Foundation’s director learned first-hand about the centre’s social work, took part in the distribution of meals alongside other volunteers and community kitchen staff, and shared time with the volunteers involved in th project.

The parish church, which defines itself as a “field hospital” for the most disadvantaged, has seen a sharp increase in its activity in recent years. It currently distributes around 500 meals a day and supports nearly 2,700 people. In addition to food care, it provides medical support, personal guidance, shelter for up to 25 people per day, and a place for all vulnerable individuals to be heard.

Força Barça