Casa os Gaiatos, Sao Miguel

Sunvil contributes £1 per person travelling to the Azores to the Casa os Gaiatos in Sao Miguel, a home for boys from problem families. In October 2006, we visited the home and made a donation of £1851.

About the Home:

The boy’s home is set up in the hills to the north of Ponta Delgada in a village called Capelas.  It is run by a local priest with the assistance of various people and houses up to 21 boys between the ages of 6 – 18.  When we were there, there were 18 boys in residence.  They also have two further houses in Ponta Delgada for children younger than 6 and over 18.  The oldest boys stay until 21 and they are helped with CVs and finding jobs/studying.  Most boys only have about 4 years of schooling to their credit.  They are allowed to stay as long as they need to – nobody is asked to leave.  A lot of the boys have emotional problems and there is a psychologist for them to talk to.

The boys are either orphans or have been moved there by their families because they cannot be looked after properly.  The property itself is set on a hilltop with amazing views of the coastline and a good sized piece of land, on which they grow vegetables and have their own livestock.  All the boys contribute to the daily chores like cleaning, gardening etc.  It sounds idyllic…but it has problems!

The building itself is in need of repair – there is glass missing from windows and holes in some internal walls.  There are very few homely touches, and certainly not many books or toys, but there is no doubt that the boys are well looked after. 

The money that we donated will go towards renovating some run-down buildings and creating another boarding house for the younger children (the idea is to move them up from the town). 

If you would like any further information about Casa os Gaiatos please contact Patricia Woodburn on 020 8758 4722 / patricia.woodburn@sunvil.co.uk

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