Church Donation Helps Youth Rise Beyond Ghetto

LDS Church Newsroom Seven-year-old Daniel is an orphan who learned how to read music and play the violin through participating in the Church-sponsored Coque Boys' Child-Citizen Orchestra in Brazil. Playing the violin in a children’s orchestra may have saved seven-year-old Daniel’s life. The youngster, orphaned after witnessing his mother’s murder in his slum neighborhood, found safety, comfort, and future direction in the orchestra sponsored by the Child-Citizen Project. Begun in 2000, the project responds to the urgent needs of young men in one of the most violent neighborhoods in Coque, Brazil. Appeals Judge Nildo Nery dos Santos, who was at that time president of the Pernambuco State Justice Tribunal, recognized the overwhelming need to motivate troubled young men and to help reduce the social inequities they faced. Nery happened to share his concerns and hopes with Elder Claudio R. M. Costa, then the most senior leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the northern areas of Brazil. Elder Costa immediately offered Church humanitarian assistance to the project. Though the project falls outside the normal scope for humanitarian help around the world, the Church is able to adapt and respond to specific individual and community needs. The Coque Boys' Child-Citizen Orchestra is part of a larger project that provides opportunities of inclusion and citizenship for children living in the slums of Brazil. “Dr. Nery has worked many years taking families who were living in the streets and giving more dignity to them,” explained Elder Costa. “The Church was pleased to support his efforts.” Originally, the program focused on sports. The Church donated uniforms, food, and transportation. Eventually, the program expanded to include academic and psychological assistance, regular meals, and music lessons. The Church recently donated all of the necessary instruments for the Coque Boys' Child-Citizen Orchestra. The members of the orchestra, ages seven to fifteen, recently presented a concert in the Santa Isabel Theater, one of the oldest and most beautiful concert halls in Brazil. More than 100 young men participated in the program.