A miner ascends from the depths of a coal mine in Antioquia, Colombia beneath a statue of Mary and the Child Jesus. For the miners, many of whom are Catholic, the icon is a symbol of comfort and protection as they descend daily into the treacherous maw of the mine.
A teenager living in Ciudad Don Bosco. The Salesians in Medellin provide assistance for at-risk children from ages 7 to 18. Many of the children served are street children, and through a partnership with government agencies, former child soldiers from the ongoing rebel conflicts in Colombia.
Two workers from Ciudad Don Bosco inspect the perimiter fence around the grounds in search of weak areas where recent break-ins could have occured.
Salesians serve are those high above the city center of Medellin. In these barrios, poverty and gang violence are rampant. There are lines of where one can travel and where one cannot. Even as I was guided around by the Salesians, there were intersections where we stopped and could not go any further, and I had news of recent murders that had happened there recounted to me in detail.
I met this carpenter-in-training in his classroom, learning his craft in the skill training centers at Ciudad Don Bosco. In addition to basic education, the Salesians also provide skill training to the older children who they serve.
A coal miner at the entrance of an independent coal mine in Antioquia, Colombia. Colombia accounts for nearly 81 percent of coal production in Central and South America and in the area in and around Medellin, many mines are unregulated and saftey standards are not upheld. In these mines accidents go unreported.
Boys play soccer in the open courtyard of one of the Salesian centers for street children in the center of the city of Medellin. The Salesians currently work with 900 children between the ages of 8 and 12 who have been rescued off the streets of the city or came to the center in search of basic necessities like food, clothing, and shelter.
