Project Background
Domingo Savio was founded in 1979 by Olga Diaz as a residential orphanage or “hogar” for children living in Santiago, Chile. Today, Nuestro Club Domingo Savio continues to work with children and their families living in challenging situations through an “after-school” and other enrichment programs.
Olga continues to lead the work of Nuestro Club Domingo Savio with creativity and resourcefulness, as she has done for more than 40 years. Olga and her colleagues remain committed to expanding opportunities for the school-age children who actively participate in Domingo Savio’s educational and enrichment programs, as well as with adult family members and elderly people who often live in isolation in the local community. Mi Club is supported entirely by donations. Increasingly, most "in kind" contributions for food, clothing, and school supplies are local, as are an increasing percentage of monetary donations. They also rely on local interns and international volunteers to lead “talleres” (workshops) for the children after school. Steve Reifenberg lived and worked at Domingo Savio from 1982-1984 and wrote a book about the experiences called “Santiago’s Children: What I Learned about Life at an Orphanage in Chile.” He has remained involved with Domingo Savio, and is chair of the board.
Definition of Opportunity
The primary objective of this project is to develop a way of telling the story of Domingo Savio and its impact on children and their communities, so Domingo Savio is able to better generate support and attract international volunteers. This includes recording the stories of former participants in the programs of Domingo Savio and understanding how the program impacted their lives. The team will use these stories to help update the website and incorporate this storytelling into their design as well as develop more concrete information/expectations and a formal application process for international volunteers.
Definition of Success
We aspire that this DAT project will generate impactful narrative stories of Domingo Savio’s work, with concrete examples of impact and personal testimonies. As a result, Domingo Savio would have an engaging and updated website that would draw in more donations and support. The site would also have a volunteer application process that both encourages more volunteers to come and allows Domingo Savio to better filter prospective volunteers before arrival. They will have a portfolio of testimonies and stories from members of the new program for elderly people experiencing solitude.