Programs
Projects
How to Help Us
Tulay ng Kabataan
The Tulay ng Kabataan
Foundation is directed by Fr. Jean Francois Thomas, SJ and is under the
wing of the Philippine Province of the Society of Jesus. TNK has developed
two independent programs: the pre-school preparation of some 500 children
from the slums of Manila and the treatment of malnourished babies and
young children; and the growing problem of street kids.
The Pre-school and Nutrition Program
Millions live in the slums of Manila suffering from the effects of an unemployment rate of 50% and the lack of proper housing, adequate education, and health programs. Tulay ng Kabataan tries to improve the education and the health of the poorest children below six years old.
The Program for Street Children
There are thousand of kids in the streets of Manila who have severed with their family and become victims of violence and drugs. They survive as beggars, pickpockets, petty thieves, and prostitutes. TNK has structured programs to help them fight marginalization and get back to mainstream society: a Bridge Class for tutorial and art sessions, a carpentry workshop and boarding home for vocational students, two residences for those who are in school.
TNK also has projects for those who have been rejected and found refuge only the streets: pregnant street girls and young unwed mothers, abandoned mentally handicapped children, and child prostitutes.
TNK in the Streets
Day and night, we walk the streets of Manila where these children have made their home, either by themselves of in small groups. By sharing a meal with them, playing a game, extending madical care, or simply talking to them, we make friends with them and try to find out how best to help them.
The Bridge Class: Our Lady of the Streets
The Bridge Class is open four day a week to welcome the children sheltered in the different centers of the Foundation. While preparing those who have dropped out of school to resume formal education, our teachers also tutor those who are struggling in school. Special art classes also provide a different kind of therapy and a way of self-expression. With these two approaches --- tutorial and art classes --- we hope to help the children stay off the streets and get back their self-confidence.
The Drop-in Center: Our Lady of the Streets
Aside from the children
found by our staff members, the drop-in center also shelters some children
who come by themselves. Open 24 hours a day and 7 days a week, the center
is a place where street children receive what the streets will never give
them: a good meal, clean clothes, medical care, and the chance to play
and study. Most of all, we are there to lend a ready ear and a helping
hand. Our psychologist and social workers help these kids figure out the
best path for them to take: to return to their families, stay away from
drugs, and go back to school.
Various daily activities and participation in housework are structured
to help the children gain confidence and lose their street habits. Spiritual
formation is also one of our priorities.
The Boarding Home for Trainees: St. Aloysius Gonzaga House
The Boarding Home shelters around 25 teenagers, trainees in our carpentry program, and those who attend vocational courses (tailoring, jewelry making, etc.) outside our Foundation. Our goal is to teach them how to live independently as responsible young adults holding steady jobs. The Boarding Home is a transition place between the difficulties of the street and the challenges of normal life. A teacher, a social worker, and a psychologist are always on hand for guidance and spiritual formation.
The Residences: St. Ignatius of Loyola House and St. Francis Xavier
House
For some children,
returning to their families is an impossibility. Our two houses are there
to provide them with a family atmosphere. In this stable structure, about
sixty fragile children are given material and affective security to allow
them to return to school. They attend classes in the nearby public schools.
The centers also shelter some very young but already pregnant street girls.
Reintegration with the family remains our main goal. But steps toward
this reconciliation are taken only when the child feels ready and asks
for it.
The Carpentry Workshop: St. Alphonsus Rodriguez House
Our carpentry workshop
provides specialized training to about twenty teenagers from the street.
Four master carpenters run the training program with the aid of a teacher
who tutors those youths who need to improve their reading, writing, and
arithmetic.
Various exercises enable our students to handle tools and apply techniques
they would need later on as professional carpenters. By the end of the
program, our trainees are able to produce quality furniture which is also
sold by the Foundation.
Furniture Shop
At the end of a 9 to 16-month training period, those graduates from our
carpentry workshop who are 18 years old and above can join our furniture
shop. During this stint, they improve their carpentry skills and become
more responsible professionals ready for independence.
Nutrition
The mortality rate of children one year old and below is very high in the slums of Navotas. Our nutrition program aims to better this situation and educate pregnant women and mothers. Every month, 50 children are helped to gain weight and better health. A professional nutritionist is in charge of this program's five nutrition centers. She is helped by some mothers she has trained.
Pre-school Education
500 children between 3 and 6 years of age are welcomed in five early learning centers to make their entry to elementary school easier. Professional educators train some women from the slums to teach in the centers. Each center is run by the parents' association with the support of our staff. The life of this project depends on the local communities themselves.
Other Projects
The streets of Metro
Manila present us with many distressing cases we can respond to only partially
while waiting for sufficient means to start more projects such as:
a home for pregnant street girls and young unwed mothers;
a home for abandoned mentally handicapped children;
legal defense for sexually-abused children and victims of prostitution;
regular training for our staff regarding the necessary education and therapy
needed by street children; and a clinic with a full time nurse.
The Tulay ng Kabataan Foundation relies solely on the generosity of benefactors. Your contribution, whatever form it may take, will enable us to expand our services and welcome more and more children. Help these children smile again. Send your donation directly to the foundation, through a check issued to TNK, or through a credit transfer.
