With more than 225,000 confirmed cases of COVID‑19 and over 32,000 deaths, Italy is one of the countries most badly hit by the pandemic.1 As of May 2020, Lombardy region had accounted for over a third of these cases and over half of the fatalities. The Milan metropolitan area, and the provinces of Brescia and Bergamo, are among the most‑affected areas. Despite the measures put in place by the authorities, the outbreak has stretched Lombardy’s health system to its limits, overwhelming hospitals and clinics with severe cases while disproportionately sickening and killing health care workers.

The confinement measures have had devastating consequences for the region’s poorest and most marginalized inhabitants, and vulnerable groups have found themselves with limited access to social services. As a result, faith‑based organizations in Lombardy are seeing extraordinary spikes in the demand for their services, including for food, shelter, hygiene, counseling and economic assistance.