Sam and Dan, both from Australia, spent their Christmas vacation in Bahay Pag-asa last 2010. They stayed in the center for two weeks.

I stayed at Bahay pag-asa for only two weeks. While this stay was too short I enjoyed it and am planning a trip back again this year. The boys were very respectful and friendly; they were always keen to lend a hand or try to teach me some local customs and language.

I was moved to see how hard they strived to better themselves and get on with the future. I hope they all do well in the future and hope to return to Negros Occidental very soon.

- Daniel Thomson
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When I first met the boys at Bahay pag-asa, later on in the evening after a short but disorienting drive from the airport, there were many things that concerned me. I had no grasp of Tagalog or Elonga, had barely traveled outside Australia, was experiencing considerable jetlag and was coming to grips with the fact that, for the first time, I would be away from my family and friends for Christmas. Before meeting the boys, I had no idea of what to expect; these were, after all, boys that had committed serious crimes. What I found was a group of boys sitting in a room, quietly, intent on watching a game of basketball. Politely, they asked me and my friend to join them, and so we sat and watched. Occasionally they would shyly ask a question, the chief among these being: “Why have you come to the Philippines, Kuya?”

I wasn’t sure how to answer.

The residents of Bahay pag-asa were bright, welcoming, resilient young men who, for one reason or another, had found themselves on the wrong side of the law. As a high school teacher who deals largely with middle-class males, I was amazed at the resourcefulness and work ethic of the boys at the centre. Bahay pag-asa offered the boys a sense of hope for reform that they might rarely find elsewhere- certainly not in adult prison- and were surrounded by hard working support staff, prefects, volunteers and guards who treated them with respect and dignity. Here I found a community of people working to better the society in which they lived. I was honored to be invited to be a part of this, albeit for only two weeks.

I have returned to Australia with a very different perspective on things, not least of all my job as an educator. My stay at Bagay Pag-asa enabled me to discover, or perhaps even re-discover, that there is an inherit good that exists in all people, irrespective of the mistakes they have made. The welcoming nature and good humour of those experiencing considerable hardship has reminded me that people, and their welfare, should be at the centre of everything we do. I hope that the boys we spent our Christmas with can go on to share what they learn at the centre, and realise that they too have to power to instill hope in those who need it.

 -Sam Carroll