Scottish Catholic Observer

St Brigid’s parish in Newmains, Motherwell Diocese, welcomed a very special visitor last weekend when Fr Peter Walters of the charity Let the Children Live came to speak to parishioners.

Fr Walters came to the parish to raise funds and awareness about his work with street Children in the city of Medellin, Colombia.

George McAleenan, the charity’s Scottish organiser who has recently returned from a visit to Columbia, said the children there ‘faced a situation that was more violent than before.’

“Previously Fr Peter could go anywhere in the city, now there are a lot of areas where it’s just too dangerous,” Mr McAlennan said. “Areas that were controlled by the paramilitaries group are now controlled by gangs and the violence is unpredictable.”

Mission

Despite the violence, the charity work to help the poor children of Colombia continues but it has also been hampered by the global economic crisis.

“People have less money to give,” Mr McAleenan said. “Also the exchange rate has been difficult in 1995 you could get 5000 pesos to the pound, now it’s just 2800 so the money we raise doesn’t go nearly as far.”

The charity has been forced to adapt and look at new ways of helping Colombia’s street children.

“We recently formed a choir which has become one of the best in Colombia,” Mr McAleenan said. ”They’ve sang for the Colombian president and produced CDs, the money from which goes back into the charity.”

However, the violence in the city makes it hard for the charity to continue to help the children. “Now we have to have 24 hour security around the charity’s centre with armed guards to keep the gangs out,” Mr McAleenan explained. “It is difficult.”

Donor

Mr McAleenan told the SCO that if the charity was backed by a wealthy donor or sponsor, it would want to take the children out of the city altogether.

“Fr Peter’s dream is to set up a safe house for these children out of the city, away from the violence, that would make it much easier to get them away from the street,” he said. “Although life on the street is incredibly dangerous the friendship and community these children have on the street is the only kind of family they have ever know, so despite the dangers they are often drawn back to it.”

For Mr McAleenan, despite the suffering he has seen in Colombia his involvement in the charity has been hugely inspiring.

“I became involved in the charity in 1998 and the street children I met then are now adults who help the young people themselves,” he said. “That has been an amazing thing to see them grow into teachers and doctors.”

And he remains committed to helping them as much as he can.

“We can’t do as much as I would like but every year I say to Fr Peter don’t worry about Christmas I will raise the money for presents for the kids,” he said, “It’s £7000, but every year we manage it somehow, people are very generous but it has gotten harder and harder. But I won’t let them down.”

— [email protected]