Who We Are
OUR ROOTS – THE AWAKENING
The 1960s was a time of profound awakening. Among other major cultural changes, Pope John XXIII opened the doors of the Catholic Church to winds of reform, and President John Kennedy galvanized a generation of young people to serve abroad in the Peace Corps. Afire with the open spirit of these two leaders, in 1963 Fr. Joe O’Looney, Newman Club chaplain at UC Berkeley, invited university and college students to an adventure of service in Mexico. He called it Amigos Anonymous.
Each year for the next five years, hundreds of students for the SF Bay Area, Los Angeles and Boston worked together raising money, organizing equipment and themselves for a summer in Mexico. Working in the states of Michoacan and Guanajuato on community development projects such as building latrines, coaching basketball, organizing vaccination programs, and starting a grammar school, the students went to Mexico to give, and returned home enriched – mainly by the friendships they made both with the local Mexican people and among themselves.
WHO ARE WE TODAY
Teachers, social workers, lawyers, administrators, videographers, and an increasing number of retirees, - to name a few - we come together from all walks of life to remember and build on our Amigos experiences. Through the Fr. Joseph O’Looney Memorial Scholarship Program, we help needy youth in Mexico pursue their education.
In his last years, Fr. Joe worked with a number of Amigos to assure the strength and continuation of Amigos Anonymous. He organized a steering committee to help guide Amigos’ programs – especially the scholarship program - into the future. Many of you have been aware of these efforts, and have supported them generously.
In May 2007, the steering committee adopted a set of bylaws, created a Board of Directors, and selected officers to ensure the continuation of Amigos Anonymous as a registered 501(c)3, non-profit organization. All active Amigos are invited to serve on the Board. Currently, elections are held annually as up to half of the fifteen Board members’ terms expire.
The 1960s was a time of profound awakening. Among other major cultural changes, Pope John XXIII opened the doors of the Catholic Church to winds of reform, and President John Kennedy galvanized a generation of young people to serve abroad in the Peace Corps. Afire with the open spirit of these two leaders, in 1963 Fr. Joe O’Looney, Newman Club chaplain at UC Berkeley, invited university and college students to an adventure of service in Mexico. He called it Amigos Anonymous.
Each year for the next five years, hundreds of students for the SF Bay Area, Los Angeles and Boston worked together raising money, organizing equipment and themselves for a summer in Mexico. Working in the states of Michoacan and Guanajuato on community development projects such as building latrines, coaching basketball, organizing vaccination programs, and starting a grammar school, the students went to Mexico to give, and returned home enriched – mainly by the friendships they made both with the local Mexican people and among themselves.
WHO ARE WE TODAY
Teachers, social workers, lawyers, administrators, videographers, and an increasing number of retirees, - to name a few - we come together from all walks of life to remember and build on our Amigos experiences. Through the Fr. Joseph O’Looney Memorial Scholarship Program, we help needy youth in Mexico pursue their education.
In his last years, Fr. Joe worked with a number of Amigos to assure the strength and continuation of Amigos Anonymous. He organized a steering committee to help guide Amigos’ programs – especially the scholarship program - into the future. Many of you have been aware of these efforts, and have supported them generously.
In May 2007, the steering committee adopted a set of bylaws, created a Board of Directors, and selected officers to ensure the continuation of Amigos Anonymous as a registered 501(c)3, non-profit organization. All active Amigos are invited to serve on the Board. Currently, elections are held annually as up to half of the fifteen Board members’ terms expire.