Italy
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In 1927, the Tiber River "Polverini" Playground began operations on government-owned land on the banks of the Tiber. It is the only playground which was not developed on Knights of Columbus property. The charitable work of the Knights of Columbus was already well known to the Italian Government; therefore, the Order was able to secure an agreement to lease the site. His Eminence Cardinal Pompilj, Vicar of Rome, dedicated and blessed this playground in May 1927.In 1934, the Tiber River Playground was relocated upstream, near the Duca D’Aosta Bridge.
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It was dedicated and blessed by His Eminence Cardinal Eugene Pacelli (later Pope Pius XII), Secretary of State. On October 24, 1944, it was renamed "Pastor Angelicus" in honor of Pope Pius XI.
Historically, this playground was very popular for its swimming and rowing facilities.The Valle Giulia Playground was, also, officially blessed by His Eminence Cardinal Pompilj, Vicar of Rome, in May 1927. Situated in the vicinity of the largest and most famous park in Rome, Villa Borghese, its convenient location enables it to serve a large number of educational and religious institutions.
To mark the 25th anniversary in 1942 of Pope Pius XII’s episcopacy, the Catholics of the World wished to offer him a new parish church in honor of the Pope’s name saint, San Eugenio. The Knights of Columbus offered a section of the Valle Giulia playground upon which the church was to be built. Count Galeazzi was entrusted with the project. In gratitude for the church, Pope Pius XII granted San Eugenio church the title of Basilica.In 1996, to celebrate the centennial anniversary of the birth of Count Galeazzi, called home to God on September 25, 1986, the Valle Giulia Playground was renamed in his honor. His lifetime dedication and loyalty to the Knights of Columbus, first as architect, later as representative of the Order in Rome for 66 years, and also as its liason with the Holy See was recognized with gratitude. During the Holy Year 1950, after a Special Audience with Pope Pius XII, Supreme Knight John E. Swift instituted a fund for the purchase and construction of the last playground in Rome. The district of Primavalle, a newly populated area, was chosen for the site. This playground was named Pius XII in honor of Pope Eugenio Pacelli and dedicated and blessed by His Eminence Cardinal Francis Spellman, Archbishop of New York, on June 7, 1952. As was the case with the earlier athletic facilities, the realization of the Primavalle Playground was entrusted to Count Enrico Galeazzi.
At that time he was completing another noteworthy project, the Pontifical North American College. In 1947, construction of the College had begun in collaboration with the Archdiocese of New York. In 1982, the Order established the Count Enrico Galeazzi Fund for the Pontifical North American College for the benefit of the college and its students in perpetuity
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Advocate Supreme Luke E. Hart, Supreme Chaplain Bishop Leo M. Finn, the Supreme Knight John E. Swift and Count Enrico P. Galeazzi visit the Basilica Saint Eugene.
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Throughout the last 80 years, the Order’s playgrounds have operated steadily, if not always smoothly due to historical events. At one point, they were closed down by the Italian government. Through diplomatic negotiations between the Vatican, Italian government and the Knights of Columbus representative in Rome, Count Galeazzi, a solution was found.
These facilities have served and continue to serve parochial and school institutions, institutes for the disabled, hospitals, rehabilitation centers, needy children, the Vatican employees and seminarians. Today, numerous institutes use these centers for their sports activities, among these: ANAFIM, institute for the disabled; the local Aziende Sanitarie and Apostolato della Preghiera, institutes for persons with mental illness; San Giuseppe Cottolengo, a rehabilitation hospital; Opera S. Pio X for needy children; San Alfonso and Agostiniani Scalzi, seminarians; students of the Pontifical Lateran University; and Vatican City State employees.The contribution of the Knights of Columbus to the Holy See also extends to the area of communications. In 1966, the Order donated a new short-wave transmitter to the Vatican radio station. Supreme Knight John McDevitt attended the ceremony. In 1975, under Virgil C. Dechant’s administration, the Knights of Columbus agreed to pay the cost for every "uplink" signal for major worldwide satellite telecasts from the Vatican.Shortly after the Satellite Uplink program, the Knights of Columbus Vatican Film Library, a collection of extant movie-film footage of the Popes, was established. This led to the subsidizing of a mobile television production studio van and trailer for the Vatican Television (CTV).
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