The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1919-03-03
Y. w. c. A. OPENS
WORK IN ITALY

Italy is now included in the war
work OF the American Y W G. A
Miss Mabel Warner Of Salina, Kan.
and Chicago left Paris a few days ago
for Rome, where she will be In charge
Of Hostess House for American girls
employed there by the American Red
Cross, the Embassy and the new Tu-
berculosis Commission Miss Warner
has been director OF the Y. w. @ A.
Hostess House at Brest, France.
Miss Warner will open a tea room
and club rooms where the American
women can gather for social times
Rome is harboring a refuge population
OF about 10000 and accommodations
are dihacult to End.
The work In Rome was started NJ n
direct result Of the appeal OF Miss
Charlotte Niven, one OF the National
Y. w. c. A secretaries I'm Italy. who In
spending a few months In France N
advisor in the French work
Miss Niven's dreams Of Y. w. O. A
work I'm Italy include the maintenance
Of q residences for n0n-Italian women.
who, she feels, viii come to Italy In
great numbers after the war to study
music and art
Fl believe at this time such q project
in particularly important because wo-
m@n from ether countries should be
encouraged to come to Italy to replace
the great numbers Of German women
who flooded Italy I'm the past. many Of
them paid agents OF their govern
msnt," Miss NIven said In discussing
har plans
Miss Niven has asked the American
7. w. @. A to aid the Italian Associa-
tfon I'm establishing q center. perhaps
INC Genoa, with two American secre-
taries, with physical and recreational
training, to act as q training school for
Italian women. In connection with IL
her plan would include Hostess House
for girls passing through the city or
employed there. Such q center would
become eventually the center for all
". w. @. A work in Italy, both Italian
and fereign.
In her formal appeal for help for the
Umfone ChriStiana Dele Giovanni (the
iItaaian name for Young Women's
Christian Association) Miss Niven has
emphasized tive facts, the poverty 81
the Italian Association ON the one hand
and the need and opportunity on the
other for an American program In
Italy at the present time.
Miss Niven's favorite way OF Illus
trating the friendliness Of the italian
woman to America IL by telling the
story of the Italian mother who said
she had taken down the picture Of the
Madonna which had hung for many
years over her bed and was putting In
it's place one Of President Wilson
'Tn our work I'm the Unione we have
lacked trained leadership a. well a
the material resources to give such
training We have had no means to
buy modern equipment Consequently
we have not the visible results OF
American and British work
"Feeble an our work may be. IT IA
not useless. Many girls In all parts OF
Italy have told us how much the
Unione meant In their lives. Italian
girls are touchingly grateful for the
smallest efforts. They respond eager
1y 20 friendliness
"There is no other agency doing In
Italy what the Association In trying q
do"
Niss Niven he's spent the past sevez
years In work with the italian We
men, starting as director Of hostel, OF
boarding home. for Italian women stu
dents at Florence. She 10 an Ameri
can from New York, where she wal
one time head Of the Christadora Set
Element House.