Eight-year old Cedric and four other members of his ‘family’ burst out laughing at a story shared by one of the boys. It is 5:45 in the afternoon. The children have just finished an hour of supervised play and gardening, and now they are having group devotions and an hour of conversation with Ella, one of the staff. Had these children still been living on the street they probably would have been out begging, or would have been going through garbage for something to eat. Cedric is one of 31 children privileged to be boarders at the Visions of Hope Learning Center, CCT’s boarding school for children from street-dwelling families. More than a year ago, he, his mother,and his younger sister were thrown out of the room they were renting because they could no longer meet payments. The family ended up living at Rizal Park, where they learned about the Kaibigan Ministry, CCT’s work among Metro Manila’s street dwellers.

Teaching children is challenging in any context. But caring for and educating children who grew up on the streets is an extremely daunting task. Before coming the the Center, some of the children had never eaten at a table, slept in a real bed, or used a bathroom. They obeyed no rules, followed no routines, learned no manners, and were exposed to crime and drug abuse. All of the children had at least at one point in their lives been abused physically, emotionally, or sexually. A few were subjected to child labor. The teachers and house mothers faced a daunting task integrating the children to live in what we consider a normal home and family setting. Behavioral and psychological adaptations took time, but were dealt with love and patience. The children range in age from 5 to 19. Their schedule starts off with a wake-up call at five in the morning followed by grooming time, devotions and breakfast.