In 1994, Mr Bongo's founder David Buttle first met our dear friend Luciano Rodrigues Dos Santos in Itapuã. Luciano sadly passed away in his sleep on 25th January 2026. He grew up in a small favela community called Dona Aurora and in his early days, sold hot queijo coalho (traditional grilled cheese sticks) on the beach. It was there that he met a Canadian woman, Miriam Ulrych, who had founded the Brazilian charity, Anjos Da Rua. The organisation was dedicated to supporting the local community and building a school for its children. Mr Bongo became involved in the project and went on to establish the UK charity, Street Angels, UK (which closed it's operations in 2012).
Luciano was one of the cornerstones of the entire initiative. He taught himself English and gave his time, energy, and heart to every aspect of the project. Between 2003 and 2010, he worked alongside David as they ran a medical clinic in the community. Together, the project cared for around 500 patients. Luciano later went on to work with the Bottletop organisation, continuing his commitment to positive change.
Street Angels was founded in 1988 by Canadian social worker Miriam Ulrych, along with Luiz Barbosa and Josefa Santos. The original aim was to keep as many children as possible off the streets of Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. From these humble beginnings, the project has grown into an efficient grassroots network with support spanning Canada, Brazil, and the UK. On a shoestring budget, Street Angels has managed to provide security and opportunities for the children of Dona Aurora, and to create a wider sense of community and self-sufficiency for its residents.
Miriam has kindly written a tribute to Luciano's memory below. There is also a memorial fund being arranged to support the education of Luciano's son Gabryel so please e-mail david@mrbongo.com for further details.
Written by Miriam Ulrych:
It has often been said that a deceased man’s worth should be measured not by what he accumulated but rather by where he started out and the good he did along his way. Luciano was born poor. When he was only six years old, he began selling roasted peanuts, along the beaches and in the street bars of Itapua, Bahia. Like many so-called “street kids”, it was economic necessity that forced him at such a young age into the risky streets to help support his family.
In 1990, two tired Canadian tourists were relaxing one evening in a bar, when little Luciano, not yet 10, came into view. The women were volunteers with Street Angels, a grassroots Canadian NGO that assisted marginalized women in their struggle to keep their children safe and in school. They were captivated by the little boy’s preternatural competency and sweet smile.
The child negotiated prices calmly and clearly, grilled his cheese to studied perfection, and handled the hot embers and drunk customers with an alertness and friendly ease that belied his age. The next day the volunteers visited Luciano and his mother at home and enrolled him in their new Fostering Education program.
For African Brazilian kids from marginalized favelas, the odds of staying in school are abysmally stacked against them. Public schools are overcrowded, under-resourced, and frequently violent. In Luciano’s day, only swing-shifts were on offer. He attended school half-days, in the mornings. In the afternoons, on good beach days, he walked an average of 30 kilometers over hot sand, the little stove swinging and burning at his side. On slow days, he worked late into the evenings in the seductive, potentially dangerous street bars. His muscled calves bore the lifelong burn scars of his childhood trade.
In the face of these daunting conditions, Luciano exhibited an incredible capacity for hard work, determination and steadfast values. He continued to support his family; he stayed out of reach of the gangs, the police, and sexual predators; he set his sights high, got good grades, and stuck it out until he finished high school. When he graduated, he was chosen from among hundreds of hopeful youngsters, as the Street Angels Youth Leadership Millennial Scholarship Winner.
In Canada he attended language school full time, volunteered as a special events organizer, and moved every three months to live with diverse families. Few people could cope with such profound and frequent cultural changes. Luciano flourished and won the respect and admiration of all who sponsored and worked alongside him. He returned to Bahia fluently bi-lingual with honed and proven democratic team-building skills.
Back home, Luciano attended Business Administration at the University of Bahia while he worked part-time in Street Angels community-development project where he supervised and inspired dozens of adolescents in numerous market-entry skill-training programs. He initiated and ultimately became the Director of Street Angels experimental Home Improvement Program.
Eventually he started his own business producing hand-crafted items for local and export markets. He joined forces with Bottletop, a British NGO’s income-generating development project that sustained dozens of families in Bahia while turning recycled materials into high-quality, high-fashion accessories that made it into the boutiques and onto the runways of three continents.
Luciano was devoutly religious, a faithful practitioner of Catholicism and Candomblé. He was deeply committed to helping others in both his professional and personal life. One day, he met an ill woman begging in the street. She asked him to look after her 5-year-old boy for a few days. That turned into a lifetime commitment and the formal adoption of his beloved son, Gabriel, who is now himself graduating from high school.
Luciano’s big heart gave out in his sleep at 44. It was a cruel shock but hardly surprising. He had worked harder and climbed steeper hills than most who retire at 65. And he’d gladdened the spirits and improved the lives of hundreds along his way.
Photo credit: Miriam