About Us
A brief history
The idea for Streetlight came about in 2005 when a small group of us from St Mary’s Church, Bletchley, got together to talk about how we could best support a street children’s project in the Philippines called Kanlungan. All of us had visited Kanlungan with Bethany Children’s Trust and had been blown away by the brilliant work that was going on there.
Bethany Children’s Trust had decided to refocus and had given Kanlungan advance notice that their grant would cease. So, our question was how could we raise enough money to replace that £6,000 a year grant?
The answer was to create Streetlight. The name spoke to wanting to bring light into the darkness that was being experienced by so many street children in Philippines.
Fifteen years on, we are so grateful for what Streetlight has been able to do and the hard work, generosity and love that has been put in by so many. Little could we have imagined that in fifteen years, Streetlight would have given Kanlungan over £700,000 of financial support and that 50 individuals would have experienced the work of Kanlungan first-hand.
To all who have journeyed with us, thank you. To those that haven’t taken a first step yet, come and join us.
What does Streetlight do?
Streetlight raises money and provides financial support to Kanlungan, that helps with staff salaries, food and utilities.
Streetlight also makes grants to Kanlungan for special projects. Over fifteen years, we’ve helped Kanlungan buy its own main office and residential care centre, fitted out a coffee shop which employed several of the Kanlungan “graduates” and contributed to the building of a dormitory block for the street boys cared for by Kanlungan at a farm south of Manila.
Streetlight is now the largest single source of funding for Kanlungan, but the relationship isn’t just about money. It’s a partnership where the staff and the children at Kanlungan are able to help all of us at Streetlight grow and learn more about ourselves.
Prayer is another vital aspect of the partnership. Streetlight supporters pray for Kanlungan, not least during this time of Coronavirus. Kanlungan staff pray for Streetlight and Streetlight supporters.
Streetlight Trustees also encourage the Kanlungan staff team at their staff meetings (thank you Zoom!)
And then there are visits to Kanlungan. These are such an encouragement to the staff and children alike. The effort to travel over to the other side of the world lifts everyone’s spirits. The experience is also life-changing for many of our supporters.
The girls centre in Laguna
The farm employment project
What is Kanlungan?
Kanlungan means refuge or sanctuary. And that is what it has been for the street children it has worked with for over 30 years.
Kanlungan started in the red light district of Manila (Ermita Malate) and was the vision of Sol Balbero who still leads the organisation.
Kanlungan is run by a dedicated, faith-filled team. The organisation has grown over time. But one thing has remained constant: a desire to show children the love of Christ, to give them dignity and to help them fulfil their God-given potential.
There are now a number of projects within Kanlungan all of which are supported by Streetlight:
Kanlungan’s Projects
Street education and help for street families and child protection.
Day centres for children who work on the streets and live in urban slums. There are two of these centres in Manila: the Open Day Centre (ODC) near Malate and the Tunasan Centre in the south of the City. These are lively places where children can get an education and a meal. The Kanlungan staff build strong relationships with the childrens’ families.
A temporary shelter and residential care centre. This centre is also the office facility for Kanlungan. At this oasis, children with no home are fed and sheltered and have a chance to get some education. Many have been abused so counselling is a big part of the work.
Long-term residential care and training centres. Children from the temporary shelter are assessed. Many go on to the girls centre in Laguna (another district in the south of Manila) or to the boys home at the farm in Cavite province south of Manila. The children live in an extended family environment, receive skills training and go to local schools. Many still need counselling.
After care to reunite children with their families, provide educational assistance to the children and work with parents to take full responsibility for their children.
Employment projects. At the moment this is focused on the farm which grows coffee, pineapples and bananas. The coffee shop near Malate has had to close because of Coronavirus.
Executive Director of Kanlungan, Sol Balbero
Our Trustees
Rev Ian Herbert is our current Chair of Trustees. Ian is now a vicar in Milton Keynes and first visited Kanlungan twenty years ago. Seeing the lives of individual street children transformed over time because of the loving commitment of Kanlungan staff is what fires up his enthusiasm for Streetlight.
Andrew Barton has been our Treasurer since Streetlight started in 2006. An experienced fundraiser, he’s the person to speak to about how to get involved and raise money for Streetlight.
Rev Crystal McAllister has responsibility for safeguarding and would be a first point of contact for anyone who wanted to visit Kanlungan for the first time. Crystal is an Ordained Pioneer Minister based in Leicestershire.
Mark Adams, Mary Lane, Jim Taylor and Malcolm Gale are our other Trustees. Mark was Chair of Trustees when Streetlight launched. Each Trustee looks after supporter relationships in different part of the country.
