austraLasia #2842 Mamma Margaret's special role at the 'Town'
SYDNEY: 15 April 2011 -- It's taken 71 years, but, at
last, our Boys' Town Engadine, through the auspices of its
expanded name 'Dunlea Centre' (in memory of Boys' Town's
founder, Fr Tom Dunlea*), has extended its renowned and
highly successful residential services programs to now also
include girls.
Interestingly, it also took Fr
Flannigan's Boys' Town at Omaha Nebraska in the USA (the
inspiration on which our Fr Tom Dunlea drew for founding our
own BT) some 62 years to itself admit girls into its
residential programs, in 1979 (but still 31 years ahead of
us)!
The totally separate girls' Independent
Living & Learning Unit (ILLU) at our Boys' Town
Engadine's Dunlea Centre has been named 'Margaret' (in
honour of St John Bosco's beloved mother, Mamma Margaret)
and commenced taking referrals last August (2010). It now
caters for the maximum 8 girls, aged 12 to 15, each having
her own air-conditioned bedroom and en suite. The Margaret
Residential Unit occupies the beautifully renovated old
Salesian residence and Infirmary (sick room) on the entire
1st floor of the ex Dining Room complex. Also incorporated
in the renovations is a large and well furnished and
equipped (and well-stocked) common lounge, dining and
kitchen area for the girls.
Actually, for the last five years Boys'
Town has in fact been helping girls via our non-residential
HART Day Program (where both boys and girls attend our
program during school hours [9am - 3.30pm] and go home at
the end of the school day - very similar to being a day
pupil at BT). However, we have found that there is a great
need in the community for a residential-based program to
support troubled girls. We believe that at risk girls should
also have full access to our services, just as boys do, and
so our new Margaret Residential Unit for girls will ensure
we address the need.
With the new girls residential unit being
added to our portfolio of services, we now have a total of 5
programs for our youth, comprising: 3 residential units
(Fleming; Power; Dunlea) for boys (Boys' Town); 1
residential unit (Margaret) for girls; and the
non-residential HART Day Program for both boys and girls,
continuing our proud tradition of providing services where
there is a genuine need.
And, best of all, through the dedication
of our team of excellent professionals under the superb
guidance of our Board and the inspiring leadership of our
Director, Jim Doyle, all our services continue to be run in
accordance with the loving core values of Fr Tom Dunlea and
the famous 'preventive system' of our wonderful Salesians of
Don Bosco.
* Fr Dunlea was not a Salesian but he drew inspiration
from St John Bosco, and in due course the work he founded
was handed over to the Salesians to manage. Australia's
original Boys Town now bears Dunlea's name. _________________ AustraLasia
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