fr. ben

i've known fr. ben villote since i was in grade school. first through his writings, then through correspondence, then i journeyed to his center for migrant youth in the mid-1980s. late last year, he wrote to me saying he was moving the center from sta. mesa heights to fairview, quezon city, closer to my workplace. i kept wondering if they did move until i stumbled across this article. through him i learned about the taize community in france, met some urban do-gooders, and had a roof over my head when i was a wide-eyed college grad stepping out in the big city.