Father Angelo D’Agostino, SJ, MD Priest | Psychiatrist | Medical Missionary
Father Angelo D’Agostino—known to many simply as Fr. Dag—was a Jesuit priest, psychiatrist, and medical missionary whose life changed the course of pediatric HIV care in Kenya and beyond. He is best known as the founder of Nyumbani Children’s Home, Africa’s first residential care center for children
living with HIV.
His story is not one of a single heroic moment, but of decades of preparation, moral courage, and an unwavering refusal to accept that some lives were not worth saving.
A Life Formed for Service
Born in Providence, Rhode Island, Angelo D’Agostino trained as a physician at Tufts University, a path encouraged by his older brother, Lorenzo. Though he was drawn to philosophy and the sciences—particularly chemistry—medicine became the foundation upon which his vocation would later
rest.
From 1945 to 1953, he studied medicine during a period shaped by war and rapid change. Known among his peers as modest, generous, and deeply respected, he graduated with distinction and was elected class president. He later served as a medical officer in the United States Air Force, where his
clinical skill and calm demeanor earned him widespread admiration.
In 1955, at the age of forty, Angelo D’Agostino made a decisive turn. He entered the Society of Jesus, committing himself to a life of poverty, chastity, and obedience—vows the Jesuits consider perpetual.
His path toward priesthood was long and demanding, but purposeful. He went on to specialize in psychiatry at Georgetown University, teaching medical students and providing care to those who could not otherwise afford it. He was ordained a Jesuit priest on June 11, 1966.
From Washington to Africa
For many years, Fr. Dag lived and worked in Washington, D.C., practicing psychiatry and leading outreach programs that brought mental health services to underserved communities. By the 1980s, he was a respected physician-priest with a thriving practice and a wide network of colleagues and friends.
In 1987, responding to what he understood as a direct call from God, Fr. Dag traveled to Africa. He arrived in Nairobi, Kenya, at the age of sixty-one, assigned as Superior of the Mwangaza Jesuit Retreat Centre. It was intended to be a three-year mission. What he encountered would change everything.
The Epidemic No One Would Name
In the late 1980s, Kenya was in the grip of a devastating HIV/AIDS epidemic—one that was publicly minimized and poorly understood. Parents were dying in large numbers. Their children were left behind. Fr. Dag began to notice groups of children living in parks and on the streets of Nairobi—some as young
as five or six. They were malnourished, visibly ill, and completely alone. Hospitals would not admit them.
Orphanages refused to take them in. Even charitable and church institutions were fearful of accepting children known to be HIV-positive.
International donors funded HIV prevention but refused to support treatment for infected orphans. One prevailing view was stark: these children were going to die anyway. Fr. Dag did not accept that conclusion.
“Then I Will Do It Myself”
After learning that two HIV-positive children would be turned away from an established orphanage, Fr. Dag prepared a detailed proposal outlining how they could be cared for safely and humanely. When the proposal was rejected as too costly, he made a simple decision. He would build something new.
In 1991, despite failing health, Fr. Dag returned to the United States to raise funds. He met with donors, testified before committees, and secured international support, including a World Bank grant. Back in Kenya, he navigated complex government processes, meeting senior officials and national leaders to secure the approvals needed to proceed. He asked first for land.
Nyumbani: A Home
On September 8, 1992, the Feast of the Birth of the Virgin Mary, Nyumbani Children’s Home officially opened its doors. Three HIV-positive babies were welcomed that day.
Nyumbani—meaning “home” in Kiswahili—was founded on a simple but radical idea: that children living with HIV deserved not only dignity in death, but care in life. Nyumbani provided medical treatment, proper nutrition, education, and long-term residential care at a time when such services did not exist anywhere else in Africa for HIV-positive children. When public schools refused to admit Nyumbani’s children, Fr. Dag went to court—and won. The ruling opened public education to HIV-positive children in Nairobi, setting a national precedent.
His vision later expanded to include Nyumbani Village in Kitui County, supporting entire families affected by HIV and breaking the cycle of infection, poverty, and stigma.
A Tireless Advocate
Fr. D’Agostino was widely known for his kindness, but also for his determination to fight—persistently and publicly—for Nyumbani’s children. At a time when lifesaving antiretroviral drugs were prohibitively expensive and largely unavailable to children in Africa, Fr. Dag advocated relentlessly to secure access to treatment for HIVpositive children under Nyumbani’s care.
He also confronted one of the most entrenched barriers facing children living with HIV: stigma. In Kenya, HIVpositive children were routinely denied admission to public schools.
In 2004, Fr. D’Agostino challenged this discrimination in court—and won. The landmark ruling compelled public schools in Nairobi to admit HIV positive children, opening classrooms that had long been closed to them. One attorney later remarked that it may have helped that Fr. D’Agostino packed the courtroom with Nyumbani children—putting real faces to a legal injustice. This victory set an important national precedent and affirmed the right of children living with HIV to education, dignity, and opportunity.
Final Years and Passing
In September 2006, Fr. Dag appointed Sr. Mary Owens—his longtime collaborator and partner in mission—as General Manager of Nyumbani, ensuring continuity of leadership. On November 20, 2006, Father Angelo D’Agostino passed away in Nairobi following complications from surgery. He was eighty years old.
Honors and Recognition
Throughout his life, Fr. Dag received international recognition for his humanitarian work, including:
- Silver Star of Kenya (2006) Awarded by H.E. President Mwai Kibaki
- Vatican “Cor Unum” Award
- Seraph Award for Humanist of the Year (2002)
- Paul Harris Award (2006) – Rotary Foundation
- Chairman’s Humanitarian Award (2004) – National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
- Multiple Honorary Doctorates – Including St. Michael’s College, College of the Holy Cross, andLe Moyne College
These honors affirmed what those who knew him already understood: his life was spent in relentless
service to others.
A Living Legacy
Over the course of his life, Father Angelo D’Agostino won many hearts and received numerous humanitarian awards. Yet those closest to him recall that his greatest pride did not lie in recognition or titles.
It was found in the smiling faces, restored health, and hopeful futures of the children and families who call Nyumbani home. Father Angelo D’Agostino did not simply respond to a crisis. He built systems where none existed. He challenged fear with evidence, stigma with compassion, and indifference with action.
Nyumbani stands today as a living testament to his conviction that no child is disposable—and that a single life, faithfully lived, can change the course of history.
Nyumbani remains his answer to the world.