History of Casas Taiguara

Beginning

Moradia Associação Civil is a non-profitable institution which was founded in 1993 by Mr. Fresnot, a french-brazilian writer and enterpriser. At its beginning, the institution´s focus was the huge habitation problem which affects all Brazil’s big cities and Moradia worked in order to search the more appropriated construction materials for poor people. Buying simple houses, even paying expired rents, were those firsts’ activities of Moradia.
However, in 1994, Mr. Fresnot, knew about the successful work of ENDA, a Bolivian NGO which had created 24 HOURS shelters for children and teenagers who used to face the cold nights of La Paz, situated at 4.000 m of height. In 8 years, ENDA had multiplied itself, constructing 10 new shelters and helping 3.500 children.
Enda´s approach was brought to Brazil and in 1996, with volunteer’s support and help, Casa Taiguara was founded at Bela Vista district, one of the São Paulo central neighborhoods which is very attractive to children and young people in risk situation. At its begging, Casa Taiguara only opened by the night periods. However, was very necessary turn it on a 24 HOURS shelter, as ENDA shelters.

Public Sheltered

Since that, Casas Taiguara develops a social and educational work in a semi-opened approach, sheltering night and day children and teenager (0 to 17 years old and 11 months) in living streets situation. The institution matriculates every children and young people at fundamental and high public schools and daily provides hygiene and medical care, psychology orientation, food (5 meals per day), arts and music activities, professional formed courses and treatment for chemical dependents.

Activities

Nowadays, Moradia Associação Civil has its activities developed by 5 units: Casa Taiguara Bela Vista e Casa Taiguara Casa Verde which deals with teenagers from 13 until 17 years old and 11 months); Casa Taiguarinha Bela Vista, which receives children from 0 to 12 years old. Each house has 20 places available and both of them make 700 attendings per year; República Jovem Taiguara: deals with males from 18 years old until 21 years old; Casa Taiguara de Cultura: offers courses and activities.
Casas Taiguara´s main aim is reintegrate children and teenagers in risk situation into society, trying to get them back to their families or to long permanence shelters.
The greatest challenge of Casa Taiguara is maintain the children inside the project as long as possible in order to consolidate the changes proposed by the Institution, and therefore giving them a chance for a better future, keeping them off the streets.

Numbers

Casas Taiguara has sheltered during the past 15 years more than three thousands homeless children and young people in city of São Paulo. The Institution has sent more than two hundred teenagers to chemistry dependents treatment along its history. Besides that, Moradia Associação Civil has sent many children to their natural family, making successfully the whole familiar reintegration process, which is its main goal.