Building Better Lives for Youth in DRC

In Bukavu, a city in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the streets are filled with homeless children. These desperately poor girls and boys wash windshields, carry luggage, beg and sometimes even steal in order to feed themselves. It’s a heartbreaking situation that our Salesian missionaries...

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Growing a Better Future for Ghana’s Youth

George almost left his home country of Ghana for the uncertain promise of better opportunity in Europe. Now, this 33-year-old former Salesian student aspires to teach other young people how to grow a more sustainable future at home. “I have a great and wonderful dream: eating what I cultivate,...

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Helping Youth with Disabilities Succeed

Children with disabilities are significantly less likely to complete their education than their peers. This directly correlates to ongoing unemployment, endemic poverty and poor health. In Lima, Peru, Salesian missionaries are working to ensure that all students, regardless of physical ability, can...

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Improving the Health and Future of Child Laborers

They have no rights. They don’t go to school. They are poor, malnourished, and subjected to overwhelming physical demands that many adults could not handle. They are the “children of the mines” in Mbuji-Mayi, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) — where our Salesian missionaries have launched...

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A New Road for Young Refugees, Paved with Kindness

“Where will I go?” It’s a question 14-year-old Saïdi wishes he didn’t have to ask. Having endured a frightening escape from the Taliban in Kabul, and a dangerous journey across the sea, this young Afghan craves stability. Still, he knows the opportunities afforded him at the Don Bosco...

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Hope and Refuge for At-Risk Girls in Sierra Leone

Young Aminata has inherited so much from her grandmother and mother: her expressive eyes, the shape of her face, her quiet manner. But she has also inherited something else — something she isn’t proud of, yet sees no way of escaping: a dehumanizing profession that provides barely enough money...

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Shining Light on Mandalay’s Homeless Youth

The streets of Mandalay, Myanmar are no place for a child. Yet today, hundreds of girls and boys — some as young as four years old — call it their “home.” At the Don Bosco Friend of Youth Center, Father Peter Myo Khin and six dedicated staff offer an oasis of love and opportunity toRead...

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A Second Chance for Street Children

Not long ago, they begged, stole and struggled to survive on the streets of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia — sniffing glue to dull the daily misery of hunger, exploitation and abuse. Now, thanks to a partnership between the Salesians and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), these young...

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