At the time the youth situation in Rome was frightening. The war was over but thousands of children were orphaned or homeless. They crowded the streets trying to make it through the day. Some engaged in menial work, others got caught up in illegal or immoral activities. They called them “Sciuscià", a mispronunciation of the English "Shoe Shine".
In 1945 Pope Pius XII asked the Salesians to look after them and the Salesians began to search for them, to win their trust and to offer them a place of welcome. They were all over Via Marsala and Via Varese, and even as far as Mandrione. The dream was to have a place all to themselves. In 1946, the English soldiers stationed in Rome sent a cake to these boys. On it was written "for the boys of Don Bosco". This led to their dropping the derogatory nickname. They were no longer “Sciuscià" but "Don Bosco Boys."
Later that year, the Salesians came across a row of warehouses in what was left of Forte Prenestino. "This will be the home for our boys," they said.
After a year waiting to obtain the necessary permissions, work began. Here is the story of the launch, as told by Fr Cadmo Biavati, the first director of the work:
"The work began officially on 20 March. The boys arrived singing cheerfully. There were shouts and exclamations, laughter and a lot of joy. These boys had already experienced pain that humiliates and love that redeems. Now they were running everywhere, accompanied by young clerics and priests, to get a glimpse of the reality that they had been dreaming of for many months. [...] In the afternoon the authorities arrived. On the boys’ faces I saw unmistakable signs of gratitude and affection. Then a priest prayed for God's blessing. Forte Prenestino had become the House of God."
Seventy years later, thousands of young people have passed through these playgrounds. The Salesians had to work to identify and meet new “Sciuscià", or rather, new Don Bosco Boys. These young people were the original vocation of the place, and are still its vocation, carried out by the Salesians and a very motivated educational community, and the constant presence of Providence.
