To the east of Santiago, Chile, towards the mountain range of the Andes, the Lo Barnechea Commune is located. In this small town we find the Prayer and Life Workshops Foundational House; it is the place where Father Ignacio Larrañaga lived along with the Capuchins friars of the Comunidad El Sauce.

 

In 1991, the Center of Franciscan Studies and Pastoral for Latin America CFSPLA (with its acronym in Spanish, CEFEPAL), was transferred to the Franciscan Family of Chile. The fathers left the house where they had lived and worked until then.

 

In June of that year, Gloria Dominguez, a PLW Guide, allowed them to live in her house at El Rodeo Avenue, so that Father Ignacio and his Capuchin brothers could live there. It was a wooden cabin built shortly before, in a rustically handcrafted manner, on pylons,having an uneven floor lacking insulation,which made it hot in summer and very cold in winter.

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In the month of October, they moved into this house in Lo Barnechea and they decided to call it Comunidad El Sauce, in honor to the lush willow tree that grows nearby. They depended directly on the “Capuchin Order of Santiago,” which in its internal structure gives it the name of Prayer and Life Workshops Fraternity. Father Camilo Luquin will be Father Ignacio’s economist and assistant, at the same time he will continue collaborating with CEFEPAL. Father Patxi Balenciaga joins them, and Father Ignacio put him in charge of the Prayer and Life Workshops songs.

 

The fathers arranged the house according to their needs, first, by adding an office for Father Ignacio and a restroom on the first floor. Later, they added a bedroom, laundry room and surrounded Father Ignacio’s office, with a room for the files of books and their editions, as well as the TOV/PLW documents; leaving the second floor for the residential use of the Capuchin community.

 

In March 2003, the International Coordinator at that time decided to buy the house from the heirs of Gloria Domínguez, so that Father Ignacio could continue to live there. The sale of the house is signed in the name of PLW/TOV and it is confirmed that this house will be the only property that TOV/PLW will own in this world.

 

Throughout these years, the house received many significant guests that are important in the life of the Prayer and Life Workshops: like Maria Victoria de Silvia, a Guide from Brazil,  already deceased and who was a decisive presence  in the the TOV/PLW when they initiated in Brazil; Maristella Carvalho, also a Guide from Brazil,and a great collaborator of Father Ignacio in the editing of various Manuals, retreats and other writings; who until now continues to work in a very productive and exemplary way; as well as, many other Guides who generously collaborated with him back then and now.

 

The house has been a witness of the fruitful life of TOV/PLW, because it was there that valuable documents were forged and validated for the spiritual encouragement of the TOV/PLW Guides; and the organizational bases of the Association were cemented.

 

There are numerous records of meetings, recordings, films, celebrations, and enthusiastic visitors eager to contribute and fulfill dreams. On Sundays, the Sunday Mass was celebrated at 9:00 am in a warm and enriching atmosphere, with Father Ignacio and Father Camilo both sharing their experiences. For many it was an unforgettable moment, because of the intimate environment and trust which was shared.

 

In February, 2007, Father Ignacio and Father Camilo called a meeting of the National Coordinator of Chile and the fathers’ secretary, to form a team that would work for the Foundational House, in the hope of transforming the house into a Spiritual Irradiation Center, the heart of the Prayer and Life Workshops (PLW), for whenever they went to dwell in the House of the Father.

 

The pertinent steps were taken to create a Foundation that would fulfill his desires within the framework of Chilean legislation. At that time, Father Ignacio considered the process very cumbersome and this project was left for later, although he always insisted on the idea of making his home into a living center when he were no longer here, or even sooner.

 

In 2010, after being ill for six months, Father Camilo passed away.  A few months later, Father Ignacio expressed the wish to transform his bedroom into an Oratory and to name it after him. He put the muralist Rosa Guzman in charge. Father Ignacio directly gave her his fundamental idea for this oratory, so it would be a place to facilitate the “encounter;” humble and without distractions, where only the Presence would reign, accompanying those who wanted to be closer to Him.

 

A year later, during what could be called a sabbatical year, in which he had to take care of a dental problem, Father Ignacio personally, took charge of making numerous recordings for the future. Thanks to that initiative, they filmed, Integral Humanism, Let Us Pray, From Enchantment with God to Enchantment with Life, Prayer Methods and others.

 

After Father’s unexpected death, on October 2013, the International Coordination of that time visited the Pontifical Council for Lay People, whom suggested to safeguard his spiritual patrimony and the diffusion of his work; implementing a place where the significant events of his life could constantly be shown.

 

The 2015, International Coordination, finalized setting up the Foundation in response to Father Ignacio’s request to make this place into the living center he visualized.  It is something like a Mother House, which we can claim as a historic property for the TOV/PLW. With the grace of God, it will always be a place from where the spirit of TOV/PLW Founder, Father Ignacio Larrañaga Orbegozo will radiate to the world his messages full of hope and wisdom.