They are CEOs who live by the logic of cooperation, not competition. More than that. Living by the logic of gratuitousness and not the type: “I give you so you give me.” We are talking about employers who take a chance and decide to employ children who have committed crimes, who have served their sentence, who have regained their freedom, are trained and are ready to properly reintegrate into the world of work.
This is the case with the Spartans. This is a growing group of men and women who, inside their prisons, have received, for long months or years, support and training from the foundation led by Eduardo “Coco” Odérigo since 2009, which seeks, through rugby, study, vocational and spiritual training, to save them.
The number that reveals this born leader and godfather today is 17. There are seventeen free boys and girls; Well trained in soft and hard skills, ready to hit the ground running. But the opportunities have not arrived yet.
The program has grown significantly in recent years, creating a bottleneck: more and more boys and girls are coming out of prisons (100 per year), many of whom are already available for reintegration, but without a sufficient number of jobs to meet this demand.
LA NACION interviewed a few of the many organizations (more than 35) that dared, with a mixture of boldness and compassion, to take this step. What do these institutions have in common? Managers who understood that for Argentina to improve, it was necessary that each one of them, from his place, contribute his own grain of sand. They believe that change begins at home. It doesn’t just come from outside (politics).
Federico Paoletti is CEO of the cooperative Cooprogetti (responsible for providing services in engineering, urban planning and the environment, among others), and says he had a powerful awakening when, as a rugby coach at the Biei club, he met David, a humble and honest boy. “He arrived on time with clean clothes, and was never missing,” he says. “It was different.” He wanted to meet his mother, Roxana, and one sentence stuck out like a sore thumb. David won a scholarship to take part in a rugby tour to Chabadmalal, and from there he sent pictures to his relatives. “For the first time I saw my son’s smile,” his mother told the coach when she saw David smiling on the coast. Of course it was the first time in my life that I had traveled!
“With so little we can do so much, to completely transform a family’s life,” Paoletti says. This comment from Roxana completely turned it around. He realized that if a person was worth it, it didn’t matter where he came from, or whether he had done things wrong in the past: if he was willing to change, he should be given another chance. “We are all equal,” says this CEO. “I am happy to give without asking for anything in return.”
This reasoning later led him to decide to appoint four Spartans. He describes them as responsible people, who came well prepared from the establishment and who would not neglect their duties without a reason in the world. Of course, this experience is not always repeated. In some organizations they had cases of Spartans who could not carry on with their responsibilities because they were trapped in old vices and bad company (drugs, lies, theft).
Naturally, Paoletti had to face questions within his co-op when he wanted these boys to join; Especially those who work in the legal field. “If they receive requests to work with educated, trained children, it is understandable for them to feel resentful; with former prisoners, things can become heavy,” he points out.
Banco Macro also had to go through internal resistance. Many employees found it difficult to accept the fact that their children, fresh out of university, could not get their first job opportunity, while the company they worked for gave second chances to people who had committed crimes. “We had to work on communication and organizational culture,” says Maricel Caretti, Director of Corporate Sustainability and Social Management. “But it was achieved. We all came out enriched.” Today, many of these disbelieving workers are proud to belong to a financial organization that “does not just spend its day counting money, but also seeks to grow in inclusivity and humanity.”
Another challenge these institutions face is achieving full integration of these children with the rest of the staff. Especially since they arrive with low self-esteem, they are submissive and quiet and do not expose themselves (lower their gaze).. During their first year, Caretti says, they sat together at lunch in the dining room, separated from others. One day she confronted them and said frankly: “Here we are no longer in prison, you are no longer Spartans, you are colleagues in Banco Macro.” And things changed. Pablo Brentes, owner of the company of the same name that provides work opportunities for many, also highlights how positive the experience has been. “It created a great sense of purpose for the team that received them,” he says. “Our challenge was to generate a story that recognized the value these boys had contributed without stigmatizing them.”
Caretti of Banco Macro takes his hat off to whoever was the mentor of this policy: Jorge Brito Sr. (founder of the bank, who died in 2020), who did not hesitate when he met Oderigo. “It would have been much easier to help a soup kitchen than to hire Spartans. But Jorge loved challenges; he was a pioneer,” he admires. He says his boss, although a realist, also realized that helping these people was an equalizer Win win For him and for everyone: providing work ensures security.
It’s like this. This is evidenced by the high rate of recidivism in the country. Those who are unable to reintegrate socially and professionally recidivate at a rate of 75%; In the case of the Spartans, the number drops to 5%. Within this group, those who can maintain a stable job, the percentage drops to 1%. surprising. Like any good engineer, Paoletti focuses on other data. It is known that people who are accustomed to stealing do so 3 times a day. “By providing employment to ex-convicts, you reduce 1,000 crimes a year. And with four Spartans within the company, we help prevent 4,000 crimes a year.” It can be seen as a drop in the immensity of the ocean. But for him, every drop counts. And a lot.
However, beyond the numbers, It is exciting to hear the testimonies of pride, gratitude, and hope expressed by the Spartan heroes of these stories. Carlos Ponce (39) has worked at Banco Macro for seven years and breaks down when speaking. “I never imagined being where I am. In prison I met Coco and many volunteers who gave me life. I was able to sleep peacefully in the ward, calmed down and knew God’s love. One day I said to myself: ‘I’m here because I made a series of bad decisions. I already made a mistake. Now I want to make the good out of the bad,'” and that was the turning point for her.
During the last years of his incarceration in San Martin, Ponce engaged in everything the institution had to offer him: he prayed the rosary every Friday, finished elementary school, joined emotional management workshops, financial education, job interview practices, and, of course, played rugby. The company loves him and describes him as a sensitive and committed man. “The first day I was very nervous. I didn’t know what I was going to encounter. It was a surprise to find bosses willing to teach me how to send an email or write a letter,” he says. Due to his good performance, Carlos has received promotions and is very proud of his achievements. Mainly in front of his partner and children. He had recently finished building his house; She finished high school with her daughter, and by 2026 she plans to start her studies in business administration. “For me, he is a hero,” says one bank executive, aware that many of them were born into families where theft, drugs and prostitution are the norm.
What does it mean to you to have an official job for the first time? Asked. He concludes by saying: “Great emotion and gratitude. Life has placed me next to good people who have given me another way to exist and exist in this world. When I received the offer from the bank I said to myself: This is a train that only passes once, I either take it or lose it forever. That’s why I take care of what I have as if it were gold.”
Also for Jorge Suarez (29 years old), who walks the streets of Capa who controls sanitation providers from Coprojeti, meeting the Spartans and getting a job was like a rebirth. “In prison, I found the love of Jesus who gave me peace and many comrades who came to tell us their stories of overcoming. They gave me strength and hope. I felt that I too could become someone else,” he says. Of course he went through storms: when he got out of prison, he was afraid that they would look at him badly, and judge him because of his past. But that was not the case. He was happy to find people willing to trust him again.
Naturally, things are not easy for Jorge or for the rest of those who leave after completing their sentence. They live vulnerable to the temptation to stray and fall again. There is never a shortage of someone they know in the neighborhood urging them to “go the hard way” and whispering phrases like: Have you seen that this is not possible? “But I know it is possible. There are stones in the road, but I can look further and believe that more doors will open for me. I care about this possibility of making a living by doing things well as if it were the only and last.“, He says.
For him It is important to keep in touch with the organization and, above all, play rugby with the boys.. “Sometimes I get to the game on Saturday and I’m upset, and there I let myself go and turn down the noise. I feel supported by my team,” he says.
Staying close to the organization and the free Spartans is one of the keys to the success of the reintegration program. Maria Pinto, Education and Employment Coordinator, is thrilled that, every year, more Spartans reach out for free and participate in their programs. In 2024, 46% did so and in 2025, 70%. There are two main spaces: on the sports side, the rugby club, and on the business side, half-time programs and recruitment.
The first consists of three-month working practices with reduced hours (6 hours per day), in companies that have signed agreements with the institution. Each boy is accompanied daily by a psychologist who also has a smooth dialogue with his supervisor. Once they leave, they enter the insert instance. “When they are able to officially join the staff of an organization, we continue to accompany them for a year, maintaining direct contact with the company so that they all feel comfortable in this new path,” he explains.
This can be seen later on the other side of the counter. Organizations highlight how well they are preparing for its arrival. “They taught me how to interview, how to prepare my resume, and I took courses in electrical and other trades. “I signed up for every training place (“Preparing for Freedom”) that they offer inside and outside of prison,” says Cristian Romero Frias (38), who regained his freedom a year and a half ago. This active boy is hard to find because he works day and night. From 8 to 5 p.m., he washes materials and containers in the AS Global laboratory and then in the afternoon delivers Rabi’s orders on his motorcycle. “I work hard, I want to move forward. I have 5 children,” he says. What he appreciates most about the organization and those who offered him work is that they kept their word. “They told me they would help me and they did,” he says.
That’s what it’s about. From a series of intertwined links between volunteers, the organization, businessmen and Spartans who do not give up. They all form one team that pushes together towards the same side.