The Association
Father Francis's Villages
A total of 1,000 children and young people live across the three facilities, 210 of whom were born with HIV.
Education is a fundamental pillar of the project: the villages offer the entire educational path, from elementary school to high school. Beyond shelter in the facilities, the association supports 158 young men and women, 23 of whom have HIV with scholarships for higher education, including universities and technical schools.
494 children and young people aged 6 to 19, including 38 living with HIV, mostly orphans and street children. In addition to attending school, they learn trades such as masonry and tailoring, cultivate fields, and raise livestock and fish.
390 girls and young women aged 6 to 19, including 52 living with HIV, with the opportunity to learn tailoring trades and engage in farming.
The shelter home for children and young people living with HIV, inaugurated in 2018, currently houses 120 people. When conditions allow, they are integrated into the San Francesco and Santa Clara villages.
Father Francis
Father Francis Limo Riwa was born in Tanzania, on the slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro. He trained in Kenya, where in 1983 he was ordained a Catholic priest and began his service in the diocese of Meru.
In 1999, he welcomed the first ten orphan boys from the streets of Meru, giving life to what would become the San Francesco village. From there, his commitment expanded to the Santa Clara and Santa Filomena villages, today supporting over a thousand children and young people.
In 2009, he received recognition for his leadership and community service. He was also elected elder by the village chiefs, a rare honor for someone not born in Kenya.
