Santo Toribio Special Education Institute in Alto Trujillo is a free school attended by 140 children who are handicapped in some way. About 30 deaf or mute children are taught to communicate in sign language and to read and write. Children with physical disabilities receive appropriate therapy.
Most students suffer from mental handicaps in varying degrees, and are taught — according to their individual abilities — the basic skills that will enable them to enter the labor force and earn a modest but dignified living.
The Ministry of the Good Shepherd provides free transportation for the 35 special children who do not live within walking distance and would not otherwise be able to attend this wonderful institution. That daily bus ride is, for many of these children, the beginning of a future.
Just meet the school bus that picks up 35 children from Alto Trujillo every morning and see the joy on their faces as they set out for Santo Toribio. This year one 19-year-old — a Down syndrome boy — did his practicals in our bakery as an assistant to the baker. The expenditure is well worth it. — Sister Immaculata
