Sommaire
NEWS
The 2023 accounts
EXPENSES
Expenses for the period July to December 2023, totalling CHF 3,208,787.85, demonstrates our commitment to our mission and to serving our beneficiaries effectively. This prudent management of resources enables us to maintain our operations while ensuring that each item of expenditure makes a significant contribution to our objectives.
Among the main items of expenditure, overheads amounted to CHF 1,615,866.15. These include staff salaries, administrative costs, as well as expenses related to operational activities such as philately and newsletters. We endeavour to manage these expenses responsibly to optimise the use of the resources entrusted to us.
Expenses relating to scholarships and other grants totalled CHF 381,130.95. These funds are essential to support our beneficiaries in Switzerland and abroad,
reflecting our commitment to the education and well-being of the individuals and communities we serve.
Operating expenses, which include expenses specific to our activities in different regions, amounted to CHF 1,211,790.75. These expenses are necessary to ensure the effective delivery of our programmes and initiatives in each locality, while meeting the unique needs of our beneficiaries.
Overall, this expenditure demonstrates our ongoing commitment to being good stewards of the resources entrusted to us. We strive to ensure transparency and accountability in our financial management, while constantly looking for ways to improve the efficiency and impact of our spending. With the continued support of our donors and supporters, we are confident in our ability to pursue our mission and create positive change in the world.
Thank you for your trust and support.
REPORT 2023
IMPORTANT DATES
REPORT 2023
Community life is getting a boost
This is not due to a lack of demand, but rather to the desire to limit the number of residents to around 26. In fact, Lara Kate Crettaz, the manager of the residence, believes that the students’ kitchen needs to be enlarged first to make it as comfortable as possible for them to live together. This will certainly be done once the house is acquired. As a reminder, we are currently tenants of the house in Sion until the end of 2024.
Once again, the majority of our residents are students at the Haute Ecole de Musique. This trend is set to continue, as the HEMU and the Conservatoire de Musique will be moving 250 m from our home. Apart from music, it’s the sciences that are attracting students to Sion, thanks to the development of the HES-So and the EPFL near the station.
What is interesting to note is the total change in dynamics between the residents from one year to the next. In the 2022- 2023 academic year, the young people were more individualistic. They went about their business without trying to forge links. In autumn 2023, a different kind of energy invaded the house. There was a lot more camaraderie and organised outings. One of the first residents to move in in September wrote on the whiteboard in the kitchen “Hi, my name is Zoric, I’m in room 203”. By doing this, he set the tone and the others followed with great pleasure. This young man explained that he is usually very shy and that his objective in coming to Sion was to open up more to others. And he succeeded!
In the summer, when most of the residents vacate their rooms, the house welcomes various groups. At the beginning of July, a group on a silent retreat occupied the house for a week. This seems fitting, given that the building is named after Notre Dame du Silence. Then, for a period of 4 weeks, music students from all over the world stayed with us to take part in masterclasses organised by the Tibor Verga Academy of Music. At the end of August, we welcomed the Rayon de Soleil action, which aims to offer a week of leisure to people who have lost their independence due to disability or age. In doing so, families also benefit from a week’s respite in the knowledge that their loved one is looked after 24 hours a day by a team of professionals.
