It was my last visit after an intensive week. Loved seeing the church at San Martin de Porres full again. Covid restrictions had barred external visitors for two years and made mass a bit a sad thing. But now the external visitors are back, helping San Martin de Porres often with quite sizeable donations.The girls of the Hijas de Esther with the traditional Philippine head dress.

With 51 girls and 50 boys, San Martin de Porres has found a new balance. The days of overcrowding are over. The child support programs at the Centro Salvador in Tondo remove a lot of pressure and now allow San Martin de Porres to focus on children who really have nobody left. Our boys love the swings!

There is plenty of good news at the Hijas de Esther, the hamlet for our girls. The last Casa will be inaugurated on 12 February. The 51 girls then have four homes and get the space they need. The new volley ball court, donated by a prominent business man from Manila, was also completed since our last visit. And with Cristina Tangco, there is finally a residentil doctor. Casa Rosal, the third cottage we built for the girls. The girls love their new volley ball court!

We visited the Casas just after lunch when everybody was busy sweeping and washing the floors of the house. It takes them less than 15 minutes to get the house spiffy clean.

Whilst most news is good at San Martin de Porres, everybody is sad about the disappointing rice harvest. There was so much rain since early December, that the rice did not really ripen. The harvest was almost 50% below last year.

San Martin de Porres will soon have its own school. Prepartions are almost completed to submit the application to the authorities. The Covid restrictions showed that the cooperation with Angelica College was fragile and that SMDP needed t have its own teachers. To save cost, boys' and girls' school were combined. The new set up will be operational by mid 2023.

We have come a long way since 2005, when we inaugurated the first building. The very first street sign is still standing, albeit one has to look for it. But it is there as a reminder of how much progress has been made.