A while ago, we received a gift: a bottle of good wine. The label piqued our curiosity—but the story behind those who helped bottle it intrigued us even more.
The story of the La Comune Foundation in Milan began with a few apartments for people with disabilities, created to support projects for independent living. It started when several families who already knew each other came to us: they wanted their adult children to have a home of their own, within a safe environment, with a good quality of life—including meaningful relationships—and the possibility to make their own choices, something that would have been difficult to achieve in more traditional community settings. Today, three apartments house nine residents between the ages of 30 and 40, who live there on subsidized rent. Our role is to provide educational support toward autonomy—we don’t manage the homes, which remain under the responsibility of the residents themselves, with help when needed. The residents work, contribute financially, and thanks to funding from Law 112 on independent living, we’re able to cover the costs.
The bottling project was one of our very first initiatives, and it’s still close to our hearts. Some friendly farms in the Oltrepò Pavese region offered us the chance to bottle their wine. We wanted the young residents to experience real, meaningful work, but the COVID pandemic changed everything. This project, at that difficult time, became a tangible way for them to understand what it meant to take responsibility for something. From the wine to the bottles, the labels, the corks: each person was involved in every step from beginning to end. And at the end of it, they held a finished product in their hands—something beautiful, something they were proud of, and something others enjoyed too.
At first, one euro per bottle went to the participants. As production increased, the bottles became part of a fundraising campaign to support the apartments and our independent living initiatives. We now produce 500 bottles in October and another 500 in April. Over time, we also launched a green business branch, which led to the opening of two plant and flower shops, and eventually to a plant nursery. Several young people have internship placements there, and some have been hired as regular staff—three of them are residents. Over these eleven years—seven for some—we’ve never treated this as a trial or a time-limited project. Each resident may experience change, new needs or aspirations—maybe moving to a smaller place—but no one will go backwards.
This is why the relationship with families is crucial. Sometimes, even when parents want their children to grow in autonomy, it’s not easy for them to fully embrace it. These steps toward independence can trigger unconscious resistance: it’s not always easy to accept your child’s decisions—like how they choose to spend their time. “My son has Saturday off—what should I have him do?” But he doesn’t need to be kept busy—he works during the week, and like anyone else, he rests on Saturdays. These are common dynamics, and that’s why we’ve launched the third year of a psychological support program for families: to grow in parallel and avoid sending mixed messages. The wine bottling project now also includes the families themselves—it’s become a twice-yearly tradition, one for the red and one for the white: a chance to come together in a different way, each person bringing their own skills and stories. And to share in the joy of what we’ve built together.
