Polly and Bengt Ohman of Lake Clear, NY

February 18 , 2003:
Arriving at The Working Boys Center

Hola!

The Working Boys' Center was founded in 1964 in the attic of this church of the Compania in Quito, by Jesuit Father John Halligan to address the needs of the poorest of poor working children and their families.

We're in Quito, Ecuador, 25 miles south of the Equator, 9300 feet above the sea, "eternal spring."

Springtime—a season of hope, and here at the Working Boys' Center, A Family of Families—hope is alive and well. Two thousand people, 400 families, come here six days a week for education, meals, obligatory showers, and more. To become a member of the Center they must agree to living ten values, from loyalty and personal development to recreation and housing. All costs are borne by the Center, chiefly through contributions from people in the States—about $1.80 a day for each person.

We are deeply moved by what is going on here—this 39-year-old program is one success story—through tremendous faith, strict discipline and strong expectations.

Bengt (as I write trying to repair a washer) and Polly Ohman

More information about about The Working Boys Center