Background of organisation
Bahay Tuluyan was founded in 1987 by an Irish Columban priest, Fr John Gallagher in cooperation with a group of individuals, the Malate Catholic Church, concerned citizens and support groups in the Philippines, United States of America and Canada. It was established in response to the growing number of street children in the Malate area of Manila, then a haven for tourists.
Bahay Tuluyan is derived from the word BAHAY meaning house and TULUYAN, a place that provides temporary shelter, like ‘inn’. The word tuluyan originated from the root word ‘tuloy’ which means welcome.
The program for street children started by conducting initial activities facilitated by the staff in the street. These included celebrating Saturday afternoon mass, occasional art workshops, small economic activities like polvoron making and a feeding program for street children. The Malate Catholic Church (which was itself involved in the formation of Basic Christian Communities in the area, believing that in spite of their poverty, the communities have resources to help them answer their needs) provided rooms for Bahay Tuluyan in the Parish Center. The ground floor was renovated with a modest grant from the Australian Embassy. Bahay Tuluyan began as a drop in center, where children could go to have a bath, rest, eat or play. However as many of the children visiting the center had nowhere to sleep at night, the center quickly developed into a temporary shelter.
Nicanor Arriola was the first Executive Director of Bahay Tuluyan. He established contact with the street children by standing on a street corner and playing his flute. He played the game ‘Name the Tune’ when the children approached him. These encounters brought Nic to gain the children’s trust. Nic’s previous experience and training organizing Junior Catechists used an approach which demonstrated the enormous possibilities of participative learning and cooperative work among children. The concept was gradually adapted by Bahay Tuluyan as the basis for alternative education for street children, involving maximum participation of the group. This approach was called the ‘Child-to-Child approach’ and continues to be part of all of Bahay Tuluyan’s programs and services. In 1994, UNESCO recognized the potential of this approach and granted Bahay Tuluyan the award for the ‘Most Promising Program for Street Children’. The approach has since been taught and adopted by many other NGOs working with children throughout the Philippines.
Children’s participation in Bahay Tuluyan began with the first general assembly held in 1989, where thirty five children gathered to participate in collage making and focused group discussion. Involvement in these activities gave children a perspective of teamwork, different from their previous involvement in gangs which had led them into trouble. These activities gradually evolved into Bahay Tuluyan’s major programs including the Junior Educators Program, Junior Health Workers Program, Participatory Research Team and Theater Arts Group. The first batch of Junior Educators commenced their training in April 1989 and graduated from the program in 1992.
