Laura Helde, 87, was living in a car until citizens helped her.

Laura Held, 87, of Viennese origin, lived in an old Ford Fiesta parked in Padua's Arcella district, in front of the Bingo Arcobaleno. At a certain point in her life, Laura could no longer afford rent or find affordable housing, so she found herself without a stable home and began living in her car, parked in Padua. This situation was reported or noted over time, becoming a local news story. After a month of this, some Paduan citizens noticed Laura and her plight, and a veritable outpouring of solidarity erupted. Some offered food, some clothing, and some made monetary donations. Finally, thanks to social media buzz, local institutions also took action, including Ater (the Territorial Residential Building Agency, which manages the allocation of public housing), at the initiative of its local president Marco Mestriner, who managed to find Laura a small home in Santa Maria di Sala, in the province of Venice.

Unfortunately, Laura Held's story, even with a happy ending, is not an isolated case in Veneto, at least for now. According to the latest Istat report, the data on homeless people in the region there are between 4 and 6 people. Most live in major cities: Venice, Verona, Padua, Vicenza and Treviso, and 70 percent of them are men. Their accommodations vary: some live in temporary shelters or emergency facilities, others sleep on the streets or in cars, just as Laura Held did for over a month.

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