Italy
Alan’s story, from Liceo Jubilar to rugby for others
There are encounters that change the course of a life. People who, when everything seems difficult, choose to believe in a young man’s potential and guide him toward a different future. This is what happened to Alan Bertaco, 32, a family man who grew up in Casavalle, a working-class neighborhood of Montevideo, in Uruguay.
His story, told to Pope Leo XIV during the November 7 visit to the Casavalle neighborhood, is a concrete example of how mercy received can be transformed into a gift for others.
Alan attended Liceo Jubilar San Juan Pablo II, an educational institution that meant much more to him than just a school. Here, he met educators capable of recognizing his worth, encouraging him, and helping him imagine a different future from the one that seemed already mapped out. Thanks to that guidance, he continued his studies until earning a technical degree.
Life, however, also had a painful trial in store for him. His son Bruno was born prematurely, at the thirtieth week of pregnancy, with severe complications. In those moments of fear, when hope seemed to fade, Alan shared that he entrusted himself to God’s will. During the meeting with the Pope in Casavalle, he had the opportunity to introduce Bruno to him, who is today part of his testimony of faith and trust.
But Alan’s story doesn’t stop at what he received. Today, he is the one making himself available to others. Together with some alumni of Liceo Jubilar, families, and volunteers, he founded the Jubilar Rugby Club, a project open to the entire community. The sports field thus becomes a space for gathering, education, and growth, where young people can experience the value of teamwork, sharing, and belonging.
It is precisely on this passage that Pope Leo XIV focused, recalling Alan’s testimony and his selfless commitment:
“We must work together: the Church, civil society, and the State. We must shake ourselves out of inertia and commit to the common good. This is the experience Alan shared with us, who today freely offers what he in turn received.”
Words that go beyond a single experience and become an invitation to everyone. The Pope in fact added:
“It is up to us to decide whether to build a new city, in which no one is excluded, or to continue comfortably immersed, each in our own affairs.”
Alan’s story tells precisely this: mercy is not a gesture that ends the moment it is received. It is a relationship that generates responsibility, opens up possibilities, and inspires caring for others. Alan was a young man who was accompanied, supported, and encouraged.
Today, he gives back to the community what he received, offering other young people opportunities for growth and redemption.
From “having received mercy” to “merciful“
This is the thread that unites their story. Those who have experienced care and trust can, in turn, become instruments of care and trust. Because mercy, when welcomed, never stands still: it transforms into commitment, service, and shared good.
It is precisely this transition, from those who receive mercy to those who give it, that is one of the fundamental concepts of the vision of spazio + spadoni: every person reached by an act of mercy can become a witness and protagonist of new works of mercy.
Source: Vatican News
