MILAN. Don Antonio Mazzi, founder of the Exodus Community, has died at the age of 96. This is confirmed by the community itself, emphasizing that the death occurred at 5 pm on July 31, in Milan.
Don Antonio Mazzi was one of the most representative figures of the Third Sector, an innovator in welfare policies and an institutional point of reference in combating addictions and youth distress.
Born in Verona in 1929, Don Antonio dedicated every day of his vocation to those whom society tended to “discard.” In 1984 he planted the roots of Exodus in Parco Lambro in Milan: an adventure born with a traveling educational project, a journey of rebirth and hope for many young people, the Carovana Exodus, which later became a national network of communities, day centers, and educational hubs for adolescents, young people, and families. His work was never simple assistance, but a paternal embrace capable of restoring dignity, dreams, and a future to young people wounded by addiction and marginalization.
A street priest, an educator outside the box, journalist, and activist, Don Antonio Mazzi did not limit himself to being a priest: he was, above all, a father. He dedicated his entire life to the recovery of the most fragile young people, convinced that rebirth was always possible.
“Don Antonio taught us to walk, often against the wind, but always together,” say the young people and Educators of the Exodus Foundation, who have stood by him over the years and shared many battles with him. “He always told us that ‘young people are not vessels to be filled, but fires to be lit.’ Today that fire is entrusted to us. We mourn an extraordinary father, gruff only in appearance, but endowed with infinite tenderness. The truest way to thank him will be to continue getting our hands dirty on the street, welcoming anyone who knocks on our door with the same smile with which he welcomed us.”
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