My role as Trustee
I first became interested in the work of World Villages for Children in February 2019 and I have been a trustee and Treasurer since April that year, providing the charity with financial oversight and governance. The work we do supports the worldwide education programmes of the Sisters of Mary (SoM). They provide a free, quality education to the poorest children in the Philippines, Mexico, Guatemala, Brazil, Honduras and Tanzania.
At school with the Sisters of Mary, these children receive full time care and a nationally accredited education which gives them skills and access to good job opportunities. Getting a good job, and earning a fair, regular salary allows these children to transform their lives and the lives of generations of their families.
Visiting the Schools
I have had the privilege of visiting the Sisters’ programmes to see the work on the ground on a couple of occasions over the last few years. Firstly, the schools in Honduras and most recently the schools programmes in the Philippines last month. On each occasion the experience has been both humbling and inspiring and has served to reinforce my role as a trustee for the charity.
Honduras
In Honduras, which is one of the newest programmes for the Sisters, we visited both the schools in Tegucigalpa and Amarateca. They care for 1,500 children. We met the Sisters and children, saw the academic and technical education being offered and the enormous hope and ambition of the boys and girls now at the schools.
We also visited some of the families of these children. In the rural and remote communities we saw the terrible difficulties and poverty they face in their early life.
These families live in homes made of mud, perched on hillsides, without water or electricity and increasingly vulnerable to the devastating effects of climate change with flooding and landslides a regular occurrence. It was so encouraging for me to see that as we are able to welcome these children into our schools they are able to recover, receive an education and learn the practical skills that will help them to find employment and change their lives and the lives of their families forever.
The Philippines
The Sisters’ Philippines programmes are by contrast the oldest and most established of the schools and I was very pleased to visit all the schools in October.
The two schools in Cavite, Biga (Girls) and Adlas (Boys) were built in 1985 with the programmes in Cebu, Talisay (Girls) and Minglanilla (Boys) shortly after. They care for nearly 9,000 children across the four schools but demand for places at these schools far outstrips capacity.
Like the programmes in Honduras, the education being provided here is high quality academic and technical, specifically tailored to the skill needs of local employers and accredited by the education ministry, in this case TESDA.
The training being provided is regarded by the national authorities as at the forefront of vocational teaching within the country and it is easy to see why the schools have such high employment rates for their children once they finish school.
Operating at Scale
I always knew these programmes were operating at scale but in Biga, seeing 2,800 girls in the gymnasium during those first few days of my visit was eye opening and so humbling!
There were thousands of children in the school grounds, in the gymnasium and every classroom and workshop was full of busy children making the most of their time at school and working hard.
Operating these schools drives my efforts as a Trustee and is an economic challenge for the Sisters and yet with their love and care, the schools maintain a feeling of home and belonging for every single one of the children.
All the boys and girls were well fed, happy, energetic and proud of their school environment, confident, ambitious inside and outside the classroom and thoroughly enjoying their precious chance for an education.
Life at Home
The contrast with their home lives before school is stark and moving.
We were able to visit a number of our children’s family homes within the Cavite and Cebu area and see the realities for these families living in the most extreme poverty. Homes in slums on the outskirts of Cavite, floors often just mud, no electricity or water, no doors or walls, no privacy, or security and open to the elements, homes on stilts in swamps.
The situation for the children from these homes is not just poor but also complex and different from that I witnessed in rural Honduras. The families in the Philippines are fragmented. Whilst we met some parents who are still together and working hard at menial occupations to provide for their children, we also met many families of children where parents have deserted their families and the siblings are forced to work to support themselves or live with distant relatives. In these situations, abuse, drugs and crime also play a part in the early life and difficulties of our children.
Educating a child
There is no doubt that the ability of the Sisters to offer a place of safety at school for the children of these families is lifechanging for them. It is also, eventually, lifechanging for the entire family.
Educating one child per family is a proven working model which will eventually lift the whole family out of poverty. But by visiting the homes, I appreciated the tough decisions that the Sisters must take.
The children work hard and have a passion to succeed not just for themselves but for their siblings and families at home, but for these families there can be a short-term price to pay with the absence of that child.
SoM Graduates at work in the world
During my visit one of the most remarkable elements I experienced was the activity and support provided by the alumni network. We had three meetings with graduates of the programmes many of whom now occupy senior roles in the economy and society of the Philippines. We experienced at the school much of the work they are doing to help the sisters with programme delivery and care of the children. They are a phenomenal and growing resource for the Sisters and each one has graduated from the school with gratitude and a strong desire to give back to their own families and the Sisters for the opportunity. There are now over 179,000 graduates and the Philippines programmes represent the majority of these, and the centre of their organisation through ASMSI.
There is 100% employment rate of children from the Philippines schools. The graduates are regarded as fast efficient and reliable. They work hard and make successful careers free from poverty. Many become employers of SoM students in their own right. They help their siblings and families with education, accommodation and health care. They are a living embodiment of the poverty relief impact of the work of the Sisters and our WVC funding.
More blog posts
16/01/2026
Sr Margie on Ukara Island
Sr Margie and Sr Vialeth visited the communities of Ukara Island, Lake Victoria, to meet children in desperate need of education.
05/11/2025
Acapulco Bay Swim
Our Supporter, Enrique swam 22km around Acapulco Bay in aid of World Villages for Children on 7th of November 2025. Read about his gruelling training and the challenge he faced.
17/10/2025
Manager Philippines Visit October 2025
In October 2025, Nicola, UK Manager and Trustee visited the Philippines to meet the children that we support through their education journey.