The Projeto Semear Marília NGO has been providing opportunities for the personal development of children and teenagers from poor backgrounds since July 2011. Find out more about this beautiful story in the following interview with Breno Ortiz Tavares Costa (photo). He works as a judge in an industrial tribunal in the city of Marília, in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. He is also a volunteer worker at the Amor e Paz (Love and Peace) Spiritist Centre, a Spiritist speaker and the author of many books. In this interview he speaks about the project and says with determination: “God acts directly in our lives!”

Tell us more about the Semear Marília NGO.

It is an organisation that provides assistance, education, professional training and other courses to vulnerable children and teenagers. We assist in total 150 people aged between 6 and 17 years old.

Where did the idea to found it come from?

It came from a group of friends who were raising funds to buy school books for children from low-income families. I was part of that group, who then decided to found an NGO that would have as its motto: love thy neighbour. That means that anything that we did would be done at the highest level, as though we were doing it for our own children. We believed that by raising the self-esteem of those children, we would create a positive atmosphere, giving them back their dreams, hopes and prospects. That would push them away from the world of crime and drugs.

How do you raise funds to keep the project going?

We don’t get any money from the government. The Semear Marília NGO has established partnerships with other non-governmental organisations and receives monthly donations from individuals and private companies. We have also set up a scheme to raise money by which people who donate 60 reais every month (about 11 US dollars) gets a voucher for some of the best restaurants in town. Part of that money comes to our organisation.

The NGO has a partnership with a Spiritist Centre in the city, the Amor e Paz Spiritist Centre. Does it offer Spiritist activities as well?

The NGO is a secular organisation. It accepts people from all religious denominations but doesn’t include religion in any of its activities. We accept donations and help from many people and from many organisations, but they must respect the secular nature of our group. And that’s the case with the Amor e Paz Spiritist Centre. The two organisations have worked together to build a new building for their activities, an area of 700 square metres. They then agreed that the NGO would use the space during the day and the Spiritist Centre would use it in the evenings, for Spiritist courses and events.

What would you like to highlight from all your efforts to get the organisation where it is now?

It became clear that we get direct assistance from the Divine Providence. It’s amazing how the actions are coordinated and everything falls into place. The right people turn up at the right time and the partnerships we need are all of a sudden formed. All we need is to make a concerted effort to work for good, to work hard and with discipline. All the rest is provided by God. The project of the new building had a final cost of 1.5 million reais (about US$ 280,000) and three years ago we didn’t have a penny to start. We often have the illusion that God created his laws and that the Universe is somewhere far away, while we live our lives here without their interference. But that’s not the case. God acts directly in our lives! Anyone who joins a project based on solidarity will realised that’s a fact!

What has been the reaction from the families who benefit from the project locally?

The involvement of the families has been so beautiful! I’ll tell you a story that illustrates what I mean. Like in every construction project, there were delays and we were behind schedule for the inauguration. We needed to have the building cleaned. The mothers found out, created a WhatsAppp group and organised a rota to come regularly to the building, as volunteers, for the cleaning. It was very touching to see their commitment, how they put so much love in their work. We also know that the children and teenagers feel a lot of love and affection for everyone who works at the NGO and that has a positive impact on their lives. Many of them are now at university, doing degrees in Law, Psychology, Physical Education and other courses. Others have already finished their university graduation.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

We must bear in mind that it is, indeed, possible to change the world. In fact, it is possible to change many worlds, as each child is a different world, a different universe under construction. They will be the mother, father, uncle, aunt, grandmother or grandfather of tomorrow, the employee or the employer. We are all co-constructors of this world where we live and we must play an active role in its development. How do we benefit from that? We live a happier, better life, in harmony with God, Jesus and the Spiritual Benefactors.  

Editor’s note:

To find more information about the Semear Marília NGO (in Portuguese), please click on this link: https://bit.ly/3bIiNcz