Finding shelter with ‘Sisters of Mary’

Many roads lead to picturesque Tagaytay City. One of the original routes is through Silang, a first class municipality located at the eastern section of Cavite.

Silang is a town of great potential, from its vast land area suitable to agriculture, high-end leisure developments, to private farming enclaves. The town’s vast resources, reliable road networks and transporation further make Silang a viable choice for investors and homebuyers.

Offering its residents a genteel lifestyle away from the densities of the metro, Silang has a special charm with its lush greeneries and crisp cool air.

Apart from quaint restaurants and various organic farms, the town has many local treasures, from its 420-year-old baroque church which was recently declared as National Cultural Treasure, the soon to be developed eco-tourism sites, to the various comprehensive development programs. All these are paving the way for a brighter and a more robust municipality.

Silang Mayor Corie Poblete shared with me the other attractions like the National Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette and the Sisters of Mary Girlstown and Boystown.

The Sisters of Mary officially started its operations in the Philippines in 1985. The Sisters worked primarily to establish Boystowns and Girlstowns to serve as schools and homes for deserving students. They take care of the indigent youth entrusted to them by giving them free food, clothing, shelter, medical and dental services, and secondary education.

Sisters of Mary Girlstown in
Silang

The congregation was founded by Msgr. Aloysius Schwartz —an American diocesan priest now known as Venerable Aloysius Schwartz—in 1964 in Busan, South Korea to provide free educational and vocational welfare for the underprivileged children/youth, medical care to the sick and the dying, and shelter service to the homeless and helpless.

In 1983, Fr. Al, as he is fondly called by many, was a recipient of the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award for International Understanding, an award given in recognition for his exemplary works of alleviating the plight of the orphans, abandoned and the vagrants of Korea.

During the ceremony, he met Jaime Cardinal Sin, then Archbishop of Manila, who invited him to set up his religious community and charity programs in the Philippines.

In 1985, seeing the urgent need of the poor and with total confidence in God’s providence, Fr. Al founded the Sisters of Mary in Sta. Mesa, Manila, thus expanding his charity programs in the Philippines. Construction of buildings and the rounding up of children from the slum areas were done and in a few months, they launched the work.

The Sisters of Mary Girlstown has three seven-storey buildings with dormitories and a total of 72 classrooms. There is a covered gymnasium with three basketball courts and a stage, as well as 29 outdoor basketball courts. To fully serve over 4,000 students, there are facilities like a three-storey workshop for vocational training, two high-speed sewing workshops and culinary arts workshop. For their sports needs, there is a semi-Olympic size outdoor swimming pool and a 400-meter running track with soccer field.

Generously donated by Alex and Marixi Prieto, there is also the Louie Prieto Auditorium, named after my late brother who passed away over 25 years ago. Other utilities include a cistern for clean water, a three-storey building to accommodate a workshop and auditorium, a graduates’ dormitory and a sewage treatment plant.

A visit to the Sisters of Mary is truly an experience. A few meters away is Our Lady of La Salette. Celebrating its 50th anniversary in the Philippines, the National Shrine has numerous visitors inside its complex that has also a seminary and retreat house.

Silang, Cavite has truly many things to offer. There is also a Wilcon Depot branch in Silang as well as most fast food chains and groceries. Life is truly booming in Silang.