Change at Caritas Ambrosiana: a laywoman and a priest join the directors.

The decree by which the Archbishop of Milan, Monsignor Mario Delpini, appointed Erica Tossani and Father Paolo Selmi as the new directors of Caritas Ambrosiana was signed on Monday, July 28. The appointments will take effect on September 1st and will last for three years.

«Moved by the urgency of learning more and better to work together» we read in the decree « we wish to entrust, jointly and severally, the responsibility of Caritas Ambrosiana to the figure of a priest and to that of a lay person ».

Originally from Bologna, 44-year-old Erica Tossani holds a degree in International and Diplomatic Sciences and has extensive experience in international cooperation and social work. She joined Caritas Ambrosiana in 2020 , initially working in the Europe and Projects Office, before being appointed coordinator of the Volunteering and Youth Sector. She was appointed Deputy Director in September 2024.

Paolo Selmi , 59, originally from Settala (Milan), was ordained a priest in 1991 and served in various parishes in Milan, including serving as dean from 2010 to 2014 at Barona and from 2015 to 2021 at Affori. In January 2023, he was appointed president of the Casa della Carità “Angelo Abriani” Foundation in Milan and, at the same time, deputy director of Caritas Ambrosiana.

The new directors take over from Luciano Gualzetti , whose mandate ends on August 31.

On the Caritas Ambrosiana website, you can read the commentary of Monsignor Luca Bressan , Episcopal Vicar for Charity, Culture, Mission, and Social Action of the diocese. Along with best wishes to the new directors, he also expressed his gratitude to Luciano Gualzetti. He expressed the "heartfelt and profound gratitude of the entire Ambrosian Church for the dedication, clarity, and commitment with which he lived these years at Caritas." Outgoing director Gualzetti also expressed "great and sincere thanks for these years of service to the Church and the poor." In his speech, the thanks became unanimous and addressed to the archbishops of Milan and all the collaborators and volunteers of Caritas Ambrosiana.

In her first words, Erica Tossani emphasizes: «The challenge that I feel is urgent, hence the novelty of a “shared direction,” is to build communities in which we learn to walk together , leaving no one behind, recognizing and protecting diversity, remaining united in what is essential: charity».

For his part, Father Paolo Selmi states: "How should I react to the request for such an important service to the Ambrosian Church? I already expressed my personal disproportion to this request two years ago, when I began serving at Caritas Ambrosiana and the Casa della Carità. This disproportion has not diminished today, but I have experienced it enriched by the encounters with people and the shared reflections of these two years."

A note from the archdiocese underlines that these appointments, as the Archbishop explains in the decree, are part of a "synodal reform of the Church and in the more specific one regarding the diocesan Curia " to encourage an "internal reorganization" aimed at simplifying the curial structure and promoting greater coordination between Caritas Ambrosiana, the Service for Health Pastoral Care and the Service for Social Pastoral Care and Work.

On November 8, during the annual Caritas Diocesan Convention , a special moment of thanksgiving will be held for the work carried out over the years by Luciano Gualzetti, the first layperson to hold the direction of Caritas Ambrosiana since 2016.

In the opening image Erica Tossani and Don Paolo Selmi – portraits from the press office