This year, on the sidelines of the general meeting, all members and volunteers of Table Ouverte wanted to pay tribute to the founder of their association, Odile Assmann, who passed away 10 years ago next December. Among the many people who came to honor her memory, some elected officials, deputy mayors, were also present, including Chantal Barbusse, delegate for social action, François Courdil, delegate for urban policy and social centers, and finally Christian Bastid, vice-president of the Departmental Council, as well as Danielle Cazes, the president of the Richelieu neighborhood committee.
A street named after him?
These were the words spoken by Pietro Truddaiu, the president of the association, prior to the meeting: “I’m not going to repeat Odile’s entire bio, her daughters, Mireille and Cécile, will tell us a few wordss, but in her book, “The Gift of Giving”, speaking of Open Table, she said: I would like this place to close, that would mean that poverty had disappeared. In a moment, we will unveil a plaque in his name in our courtyard, and we will officially ask the town hall to honor his memory and his values of solidarity, generosity and fraternity, by renaming a street, if possible in this neighborhood, and I think she fully deserves it. In 2015, shortly after his death, several people had already asked for it, and time passed…” Then he reminds that the association is open all year round from Monday to Friday, that there are 224 members, including 148 donors, 66 volunteers, 3 employees, 2 people in civic service and 1,603 people registered at the end of 2023 compared to 1,149 in 2022, before presenting the various moral, activity and financial reports of the past year for which a complete document had been given to the participants upon their arrival.
This was followed by the election of new members of the board of directors and the speeches of elected officials. Christian Bastid remembers Odile who took the time to listen, and salutes the work of the volunteers. For Chantal Barbusse, it is important to work with all the associations. François Courdil, for his part, underlines the pride in seeing the commitment of some for the benefit of others. The meeting ended in music with Bruno and his accordion around the glass of friendship.
Correspondent Midi Libre: 06 60 64 81 95
