Pasil's playground of hope, change

CEBU, Philippines - Pasil is identified as one of Cebu City’s most depressed areas. It is popular not only for its fish market but also for its notoriety being considered as one of the city’s hotbeds of criminality and the breeding ground of many things illegal.

       However, more than being known for its thriving fish market and more than having a tainted public image, a closer look at impoverished Pasil will make one realize that it is also home to thousands of families fated to suffer the sad and devastating consequences of poverty. And as in all cases poverty affects children the hardest.

       It was because of this reality forty years ago that inspired the Don Bosco Fathers and Brothers to involve themselves, organize and establish the Don Bosco Training and Youth Center in Pasil. With the mission of helping out children living in poverty and hopelessness, the center was built to reach out and provide guidance to out-of-school youths of Pasil who would otherwise be victims of various kinds of social evils when left unattended to.

The Playground

Youth signifies hope and promise for the future. But this hope and promise cannot be realized if the youth of today are not properly tended and given the proper education to meet life’s challenges and difficulties. Idleness with poverty as a result of being an out-of-school youth has forced the young people of Pasil to engage in drug addiction and crimes. The children in their tender years are left on their own to play out on the streets finding themselves exposed to the many social evils in their neighborhood.

       Responding to this problem, the Don Bosco Youth Center has made it a long practice to open its gates for all the youth of Pasil an hour everyday so they can play and have safe fun. Every day before 6 o’clock in the evening children of all ages wait outside the gate of the center. As soon as the clock strikes 6 and the gates are opened, they all eagerly rush inside to either reserve one of the 5 basketball courts provided for them by the center or find a good spot for them in the spacious quadrangle to play with their friends. As a rule, however, before they are allowed to begin their play all the children pause to say a prayer of thanksgiving.

       Fr. Abundio Bacatan, or Fr. Boni, the Don Bosco Youth Center’s Administrator and Youth Director, explains “We have so many kids here who just want to play. And for those kids if they just play outside, sa kilid-kilid, it’s not safe. Here they know they are safe because when we open the center we are always here. It’s not like it’s open and they are left on their own to play. There’s always someone, one or two Salesians or in-charge who are here. Otherwise, we don’t open it. Di mi mangabli kung wala mi. We always make it a point to be here while the children play.”

The Salesians were founded by St. John Bosco and they are known for their involvement in many different forms of youth ministry. The works, services and activities of all Don Bosco Training and Youth Centers are all in keeping with St. John Bosco’s teachings and practices. Fr. Boni explains that their work is inspired by the Saint who, in order to keep the youth far from sin, gathered young people to get them to play, attracting them with games and entertainment. It was during these gathering of young people around him that Don Bosco instructed them in the Catechism.

The Training Ground

       The founders envisioned this institution to provide long term solutions by guiding the children in enhancing their full potentials through the formation of different clubs that discover, mold and hone the talents of these children. From performing, arts and crafts, to sports clinics, to vocational courses and even formal education through their scholarship programs, the youth center provides a wide range of activities and opportunities for their development. At present the center has eight youth groups or clubs.

Establishing youth centers in key areas serve as formative intervention for those children who live in poverty and stand the risk of getting into drug addiction or other social vices.

       The latest activity that the youth center launched was iTouch. The objective was to have the youngsters experience what Don Bosco did as a child in gathering his friends for play and prayer. For three days instead of going to the center youth leaders and regular members were given the task of going out to different streets in Pasil, each assigned an area. There they gathered the children, played with them, prepared prizes for them, prayed together and taught their “members” how to pray the rosary. In short, they replicated what the youth center was doing. At the end of their three-day task, the youth leaders came back very happy to have experienced in actual practice what Don Bosco did to save the young people.

       The center has about three hundred members and the number is growing. Each group is facilitated and guided by at least two animators, or youth leaders, while membership is open for any child or youngster to join.

       Aside from providing the children a safe place for recreation the center also offers the young students, particularly their Salesian scholars a conducive place for study. Every day students arrive at the center with their school books and materials, geared up for an hour of review of their lessons and completion of their homework and projects.

Paradigm shift

       Education, whether in the academic or vocational fields, have been the Salesians’ main vehicle for the each youngster’s self-development. 

        Hence, more than just being a place for recreation, the center also offers Vocational courses to the poor but deserving out-of-school of the area and arm them with skills they need to uplift their conditions in life.

       Technical training has become the hallmark of the Salesians, and it is in fact one of the things Don Bosco schools and centers are known for. The introduction of skills training and development introduce the out-of-school to a paradigm shift in viewing their resources and parallel to the innate skills they possess. Most people who grew up in poverty think that because they live in such an unfortunate conditions, their chances of progressing to a better life, like finding a decent job, is close to zero; while those who grew up in moderate conditions and able to finish formal education are secured of all employment opportunities.

       Don Bosco- Pasil has organized its training program to specialization of Machine Shop, Automotive, Welding, Woodworking, and Dressmaking. This is in keeping with industrial development and the industry’s demand for highly competent workers.

       They believe that by opening up more opportunities to marginalized youth to acquire productive skills will help them through life. The skills training would adequately equip them with the esteem to face the numerous challenges in the world of work and society as a whole.

       Fr. Boni shares that those who avail of the Vocational Courses without scholarship grants only pay 25% of the actual training costs. They get by with the help of various government institutions, private individuals and corporations who have been generous in their assistance training center. They reach out through generous scholarship grants, hiring of the Training Centers’ graduates, filling the shops with job orders, donations of equipment, and the sharing of their expertise.

Youth Centered Don Bosco

       Fr. Boni points out that “Just like what Don Bosco used say, the youth center is like the drums of the parade. It is meant to attract but in the end the substance lies in the spiritual formation and prayer. What really distinguishes us is the spiritual formation of the youth.” In actual practice, every evening when all the children have gathered in the Youth Center, they pray the rosary together. They celebrate feasts and organize recollections and retreats for the youngsters of Pasil.

       Another feature of Don Bosco youth and training centers is that while they provide all the formative activities for the youth at risk, give out scholarship grants, offer skills and training courses, their work does not stop there. They continue looking after the young providing guidance when they can even after they have found jobs. They interact and become friends with those they serve and dedicate their work to. This is why their former youth members, leaders and graduates are known to give as much support as they can in any way within their resources to help the projects of Salesians. They were molded into becoming better persons, better Christians through the inspiration of Don Bosco.

        Fr. Boni explains the essence of their work, and it is that “The essence is you are there and you encounter the youth in a positive way.”

The Relics of St. John Bosco is currently on tour in the Philippines, at present it is in Cebu for its twelve-day tour. His relics will be at the Don Bosco Formation Center, Lawaan, Talisay City from December 19, 20-30; Mary Help of Christians School, Minglanilla on Dec. 20 ; and at the Lourdes Parish, Punta Princesa on Dec. 23. (THE FREEMAN)