Kindness in words creates confidence. Kindness in giving creates love

Aug 15 is important to all students and graduates of The Sisters of Mary School. Aside from the fact that it is the school's foundation day, students also celebrate this day as their "birthdays". The Sisters of Mary School offers free high school education with integrated vocational course to poor students. For four years, students live on campus with only a couple of weeks annual vacation. Everything they need is being provided for free.

Micheal Tan once visited the Silang Campus and wrote about it in his column-

I’ve avoided sponsoring students in high school, quite frankly. There’s just too much that can go wrong. And yes, I’ve wondered at times if you could just put them in a greenhouse environment, sheltered from the world and given special care so they can concentrate on their studies.

It turns out there is such a place: Boystown and Girlstown (yes, kept separate) in Silang, Cavite. They’re part of a global network of World Villages for Children begun by an American, Fr. Aloysius Schwartz. Starting with one facility in South Korea, Father Schwartz eventually set up more of his “villages” in the Philippines, Guatemala, Mexico and Brazil. He died in 1992, but a congregation he set up, the Sisters of Mary, continues his work. It is currently headed by a Korean, Sr. Michaela Kim.[Source]

I actually belong to the 4th batch of students who graduated from the Sisters of Mary School (SMS). What Mr. Tan said is true. We in fact consider The Sisters of Mary School as paradise.

This coming Sunday, it will be a feast for students who are still inside SMS Campuses here in the Philippines. It has been a tradition for us graduates to visit the campus every Aug 15 or Sundays nearest this date to organize games and fun activities for the students. This is our way of paying forward. We bring in candies, chocolates and other foodies as prizes for the games and gifts for their birthday. These are actually enough to paint smile on their faces. And every time I hear them say Salamat po Kuya! somehow it melts my heart. You can feel the sincerity and the happiness in their hearts. Uhm...enough said. Baka maiyak pa ako.

And if you wonder how is it possible to run a program like the Sisters of Mary School for free, it is real simple – through donations. And in case you want to help in running this program, donations in any amount would be most welcome. You can make a donation online or direct deposit in banks.

The World Villages for Children is the charitable institution responsible in organizing the funds for the operations of Sisters of Mary School campuses in Brazil, Mexico, Korea and Philippines. CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT HOW YOU CAN BE OF HELP.

Fr. Al's Children Foundation, Inc. (FACFI) was established on November 26, 1992 as a non-stock, non-profit organization which serves as the local funding arm for the Sisters of Mary. It is registered with BIR as a donee institution authorized to receive donation, which is tax-deductible for all the donors.

For your donations, please make check payable to Fr. Al's Children Foundation, Inc. You may deposit your donations to:

Philippine National Bank Acct. No. 245-831134-2 or

UCPB Savings Account No: 167-000716-1

Thank you in advance! :-)

Happy birthday to my ASMSI Family!