Boys Town is a non-governmental organization located in Lourdes, Agua Caliente de Cartago, Costa Rica. Its mission is to create opportunities for boys with limited resources who have academic problems or come from marginalized communities.
Luis Guillermo Solís was presented the emblem of Boys Town, which is educating more than 450 boys under Augustinian tutelage in keeping with their motto “Learn by Doing.” The center is coordinated by the National Children’s Foundation.
Ninety-one Percent Complete the Program Successfully
The director of the institution, Father Jesús María Ramos Leza, welcomed the president and informed him that 91 % of the boys who enter Boys Town complete the program successfully.
Jesús María Ramos explained to the president that Augustinian philosophy helps the boys to discover their attitudes and their aptitudes in the psychosocial, academic, and technical aspects of their personalities, and to interiorize the Christian, humanistic, and transcendental values and principles that will facilitate their self-fulfillment.
Address by Luis Guillermo Solís
In his talk to the Boys Town community, the president of Costa Rica affirmed that resources are necessary in order to be able to govern for the good of the people, “and we cannot fight poverty and ignorance or invest in housing and in our youth unless the givernment is given the capacity to invest.”
“I am not going to permit that the government of the state be left without resources,” the president assured his listeners. “Only in this way can Costa Rica fulfill its obligations, both in its internal debt and in its external debt. We are going to convince our representatives.”
The president added that his goal is to bring about “a country that is inclusive and just, that gives importance to the educational model.”
One of the Students Addressed the President
One of the students gave a talk in which he told the president of Costa Rica that Boys Town brings together almost 500 boys from all parts of the country, from different social, economic, and cultural circumstances, from poverty or extreme poverty or at social risk, “but united in one common determination to improve their situation.”
“Here we have found a place where we can develop our capacities, put into practice the values of community, and set up a plan of life that, in other circumstances, would not have taken place, as happens at times when there is no guide to direct our steps. You know this very well from your long teaching career,” he stated, referring to Luis Guillermo Solís’ life as a historian and scholar.
The young student stated that the friars and teachers at the center teach all of the students that “the imortant thing is not how much knowldge we can aquire, but how much we are capable of changing in order to face the future with optimism.”
Costa Rica Can Be “Proud” of Boys Town
In conclusion, the student thanked the president for his visit and stated that “Costa Rica can be proud of Boys Town, not only because of its accomplishments, but also because it is a clear example of how, working together, the institutions of the government, the Church, and the people can take that final step toward an economic and social development that is equitable and respectful of nature.”
Profile of the Students
The typical boy who enters Boys Town is an adolescent who freely chooses to remain in the institution, with a desire to study and learn a trade or skill, who comes from a situation of basic or extreme poverty, with the risk of social exclusion, and who has had difficulties in his studies or has dropped out of school.
Fonded in 1958
Boys Town was founded in 1958 by Father Luis Madina Michelena, an Augustinian Assumptionist, and was turned over to the Augustinian Recollect Friars in 1965. In commemoration of its 50th anniversary, the Legislative Assembly of Costa Rica declared it a “Distinguished Institution of Costa Rican Social Promotion” on December 11, 2008, in keeping with Law number 8692.
Boys Town aims to be a model educational institution on the national and international level, excelling in the integral formation of youth and promoting personal, technical, and academic opportunities that enable young people to successfully confront the social and occupational challenges and demands of modern life. In addition, it strives to offer a model of family unity and to contribute to the development of a supportive and inclusive society.