You may only be one person in the world, but you may be all the world to one child.
—Fr. William B. Wasson, Founder of Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos
Always concerned with the needs of the poor
Born on December 21, 1923 in Phoenix, Arizona, Father William Wasson was always concerned with the needs of the poor. He received his MA in law and social sciences at San Luis Rey University, Santa Barbara, California. He then travelled to Mexico, where he was ordained a priest in 1953 by the VII Bishop of Cuernavaca. Fr. Wasson was assigned to the chapel in the Tepetates market district of Cuernavaca, and almost immediately instituted a day care centre for poor children. A year later he rescued a boy from a harsh prison sentence for stealing from the church poor box “because he was hungry.” Father Wasson won custody of the boy and 8 others in the cell with him. Thus began Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos (NPH), which means Our Little Brothers and Sisters.
Father Wasson: 50 years of service to children
Father Wasson dedicated 50 years of his life to serving as a father, provider and teacher to more than 18,300 orphaned, abandoned and poor children. NPH now operates homes in 9 countries: Bolivia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Peru. He has received international recognition for his work on behalf of children.
As a scripture scholar, Father Wasson wrote 3 books: Luke XV, Gospel in the Dust, and The Sermon on the Mount. If you are interested in purchasing a copy of one of these books, please contact us.
On August 16th, 2006, surrounded by pequeños, the children of NPH he loved so dearly, Father Wasson died in Cottonwood, Arizona. His legacy lives on through more than 3,000 children receiving childcare from NPH in 9 countries.
