Padre Guido

Saturday, December 22, a group of us took a trip to the country: Sgt Aaron Beck, the MSG (Marine Security Guard) in charge of the Toys for Tots program, Sisters Anita and Georgette, Sam and Odile, and Roger, the driver. The back of the vehicle was loaded with bags of rice, cornmeal, beans and other not-too-perishable items, and a big box of toys. First, we went to pick up Padre Guido at his center in Masina, where he showed us the new buildings for his streetboys and other people thrown into misery by all that has happened here. Then we got directions to the place out in the country where he has nearly 200 hectares that he's turning into a farming training center for those boys who want to get out of the city and into farming.


The drive was very long, but familiar: Padre Guido's place is past Menkao, past the turnoff for the sisters' land, and down its own, long, rutted, bone-breaking, joint-jarring path. But when you get there! wow! In less than six years (and they were not peaceful years here), Padre Guido has created a "Paradiso", as his Italian volunteer, Angelo, called it. A long avenue shaded by tall trees on both sides leads to a group of buildings, connected by flowered paths, interspersed with orchards, plots of pineapples, vegetables, grazing land for cows. A lake mirrors the white sky in the background.

The cute round huts are for guests. Any takers?

I had met Padre Guido at the Italian Ambassador's residence eight days before, where the International Women's Club was treated to lunch and the priviledge to meet and hear Padre Guido. I was quickly recruited for interpreting for the non-French-speaking ladies of the club. Padre Guido, originally from southern Italy, moved with his family to Milano in his teens, where the jobs were. His father missed the country life, though, so the family soon acquired a small farm in the countryside, where Guido learned farming and construction. He has the contagious explosive energy and joie de vivre of southern Italians. It's hard not to like him instantly.


What caught my attention, of course, was when he mentioned a place in the country for "reinsertion" of street boys into rural life. I just had to go see it, the Sisters had to go see it, and bringing gifts was of the season. We made it a plan.





I've uploaded pictures on snapfish, where you can see a lot more of them. It took hours to upload them with the weak connection we have here. Here's one with us posing on the grounds of the farm/school.



We toured the grounds. When Guido first came here, with two educators, an agronomer and ten boys, they lived in tents. Immediately, they cleared a patch of land for cassava, the staple food here. Then, they put up the first building, not far from the lake. Next to it is a water tank. The water comes from a spring half a km away, on a farm run by Italian nuns. It's potable. Water from the lake is used only for washing clothes, floors, etc, irrigation and for the animals. Quite a plumbing project!

More pictures on Snapfish:
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http://www2.snapfish.com/share/p=649271198746418764/l=341911133/g=108896982/otsc=SYE/otsi=SALB