Month: January 2022

Norway has reopened while Romania and Uganda are still fighting the pandemic

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In Norway, we are all happy that the country has reopened, but although we are grateful to be able to enjoy freedom, we see that our colleagues in both Romania and Uganda are still struggling with obstacles related to the pandemic.

In Norway, we are all happy that the entire 85 % of the population has now been fully vaccinated and the country has reopened, but although we are grateful to be able to enjoy freedom in a more ordinary everyday life again, we see that our colleagues in the projects in both Romania and Uganda is still struggling with obstacles related to the pandemic. We are proud that Norway has managed to get this far in the vaccination campaign here at home, but at the same time the demanding situation of our colleagues in Romania and Uganda is another reminder of the inequalities and injustices in the world.

In Romania in early 2021, the country was well on its way to gaining control of the pandemic, but since September the country has had another outbreak of the coronavirus which has set new records for the number of infected in the country. Romania is currently one of the countries in the EU with the lowest vaccination percentage of the population with approx. 1/3 of the country fully vaccinated. The country's vaccination campaign has been hampered by the population's low trust in the authorities and misinformation about the vaccine (according to reuters.com). This has affected some of FAS '(Adina Romania) projects, but despite the situation, the staff has had the opportunity to keep Adina Home open for activities and has completed most of the planned activities for the year. Some students have nevertheless been prevented from participating in the offer at Adina Home when outbreaks of infection at the school they attend have sent them out of quarantine and prevented them from being able to participate in FAS activities. The staff has now worked in a "corona situation" for over a year and masks, social distancing, and a high focus on hand hygiene at the center have become part of everyday life. Despite the demanding situation, FAS has managed to start a new project in 2021, with funding from the EEA and the Active Citizens Fund. The project is called "Pupil to Employee" and is a collaboration with the Adina Foundation Norway and the Church's City Mission. The project is now underway, currently with digital solutions, but it is hoped that all the usual project activities can be carried out as planned from 2022. Active Citizens Fund Romania is a program funded by Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway through EEA funds 2014-2021.

Adina is investing in the future through an exciting new computer tool «e-LFA» in the follow-up of its projects.

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Fana youths build bridges in Romania

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Two worlds met when a group from Nordahl Grieg upper secondary school traveled to Romania to discuss the content of the concept of democracy with Romanians of the same age.

TEXT AND PHOTO: MAGNE REIGSTAD

Romania and Norway are democracies, but that's where the similarities end. Norway is in the top tier in most surveys that tell about the population's prosperity and happiness. Romania is the poorest country in the EU family, and the Oltenia region that the young people visited is the poorest in Romania.

The Fana youths made up half of the participants in Project DemocraTech Erasmus + / Aktiv Ungdom. The scheme is financed with funds from the EU, and the Adina Foundation in Bergen was responsible for the implementation. The special name is due to the fact that the other half of the delegation of 16 Norwegian young people taught their Romanian peers to build and program small robots.

- It was quite strong for the Norwegian young people to meet some of those whom they have supported over the years through their many school actions. Several of those who have received a helping hand from them for school fees or a bus ticket are studying medicine, law, IT or technical subjects, says Hilde Sandnes, general manager of the Adina Foundation in Bergen.

- The trip home to Alexandru made an impression, says Emil Torvik Griffiths (16). Alexandru Dumitru Olaru lives in a typical Romanian village just outside the city of Craiova. - There are big differences between the city and the countryside. Craiova is like a Norwegian city, but the image of Romania changed when we came out in the countryside.

- Two of those we visited had their own room, but a third had to share with the rest of the family. We probably learned that much we take for granted in Norway does not exist in a Romanian village, that what we would call a problem strictly should not be when we compare ourselves with those we worked with in the project, says Emil who goes to vg1 on Nordahl Grieg vgs.

Emil experienced that Romanians were less accustomed to openness than their Norwegian peers, but this gradually changed. - They said that they wanted to get a proper education, that they saw it as a success factor to get out of poverty. And everyone wanted changes in society, says Emil.

There is a lot of political unrest in democracy Romania. It is conceivable that one of these will one day take over political control locally or nationally. The group gained Norwegian impulses through thorough discussions about both human rights, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, equality and the right education and the right to decide over their own lives.

The democracy group and the robot group had to work closely together to find good solutions, whether it was when building and programming rolling robots of Lego bricks, or discussing themselves through the diverse concept of democracy. The Norwegian young people gained insight into great differences, but also experienced that there are many similarities, regardless of starting position and nationality.

Hilde Sandnes thinks it is fantastic that the EU gives young people this opportunity for what she defines as bridge building that will stimulate young people to become active citizens.

- We have probably got a slightly special impression of Romanians here in Bergen, but knowledge builds tolerance. The Romanian girls in the project will start a group where they will make young girls aware before they have to make decisive choices in life, for example how important it is to complete school, says Hilde Sandnes.

This is the third time the Adina Foundation has run an EU-funded program. 16 young people and four adult leaders completed the seven-day program. The Norwegian delegation also included students from Danielsen ungdomsskole, Framnes videregående, Åstveit ungdomsskole, Knarvik videregående and Bjørgvin Montessoriskole.

Small school makes a big effort for Adina

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Darbu school in Øvre Eiker also made a solid effort in 2018 for the Adina Foundation. The students have collected more than 18,100 kroner.

The impressive result for this is a fairly small school. The students' ingenuity is also diverse. Various activities have been arranged on the school grounds, and the students have taken control both inside and out. The events included slides from our projects so that the students gained more knowledge about who we help and how we use the money.

Adina can accomplish a lot for the great gift from Darbu school in both Romania and Uganda. It is always nice to come to the schools and preschools outside Craiova and to the center in Lira and tell about the Norwegian children who care. Many thanks to all the enthusiasts at Darbu from the Adina Foundation in Norway and from those you help in our two countries.

Norad supports our holistic philosophy

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Norad has granted us a budget of NOK 2,160,000 for operations in Uganda in the period 2017-2019. A solid recognition of our work for the disabled and the ideas we build on to develop civil society. But the Norad support is unfortunately not enough for everything, so we still need every single Norwegian sponsor and sponsor.

TEXT AND PHOTO: MAGNE REIGSTAD

POINTING. In 2016, we rehabilitated 175 disabled children at our center in Lira, and this work must continue because the need for further efforts along the same tracks is worryingly large. Our people have mapped this through countless visits out in the bush. We need both private donors and government assistance funds to be able to do the job. Adina is popularly called the "Giant" among the aid organizations, but the people's trust and good results alone are not enough to trigger a grant from Norad. They give the individual applicants points in various fields, and this year the Adina Foundation reached 76 - the magic limit for receiving part of the state aid crowns.

THE ROAD CHOICES. The Adina Foundation's path choice in northern Uganda is in line with the political signals the blue-blue government has sent out at several crossroads. We pick up from the villages the very weakest - the disabled that the families will hardly acknowledge. The children are examined and operated on, and after the training they can go home from the Lira Rehabilitation Center as healthy. In our scheme, there are no costly intermediaries. The money from Norway goes to pay our physiotherapists and social workers who work with our children, and we buy operations directly at the CoRSU clinic in Kampala.

SCHOOLING. The government - and not least Prime Minister Erna Solberg, places great emphasis on children's education. We loyally follow up the children with schooling, but education is so much on the outskirts of Uganda. We strive for a good learning environment in our premises at the center and in the village schools where "our" children are students. Adina emphasizes this because we know that the quality of schooling in Uganda is so variable that it worries the country's top political leadership.

THE WHOLE THOUGHT. Food shortages, dramatic population growth and rising unemployment - these are three of the most difficult challenges facing Uganda, in addition to devastating corruption. The Adina Foundation is building a small pattern farm where we teach small farmers to produce products that are both important in the diet and in demand locally. Food production and trade are therefore good building blocks for creating jobs and modernizing civil society.

THE BRIDGE BUILDERS. The rehabilitated children and their families are building bridges between an old village culture and a new way of thinking in northern Uganda. In addition, we hire local labor for the operation of the farm. Village women who travel to work for paid work are a bit of a dramatic upheaval in these communities. It is the women who take the new time the fastest.

THE ORDER. Several Norwegian underutilizations of large global aid organizations did not reach this year's Norad award, but not unexpectedly the largest amounts went to the major players. For the current budget year, Adina will be awarded NOK 720,000. The scope of Norwegian development assistance will always be the subject of debate and ongoing assessments. In recent years, it has been a stated political goal that the number of aid recipients - that is, both countries and organizations - should be reduced. The "order" from the politicians was effected this year and we just came along.

Finally, we shut up the doors in the Adina Home

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Children and young people flock to Adina Home in Simnicu de Sus. This they have been waiting for for months. Now the district is classified as yellow on the corona scale and then we opened the doors.

TRAVELT. The months of closed houses have been busy and well used. The staff of Fundatia Adina Stiftelsen (FAS) has been in place in the offices, decorated and furnished, but football games and table tennis tables had to stand there unused month after month and no curious children's eyes hunted for exciting reading experiences on the library shelves.

THE MOST IMPORTANT. Finally, the most important users can occupy the house they have had to look at from a distance behind fences and closed gates. Expectant girls and boys pose with stars in their eyes. There are few leisure activities elsewhere in this area. It has been a long month for the children, with and without schooling in the autumn of 2020.

 

SOCIAL LEARNING. Daniela and Laura, Valentin and Andrei and Razvan all the others know about Adina's activities and what they can expect in common with our employees. The table tennis table slams and there is jubilation around the football game every single afternoon. Many of the children have been part of our after-school program for many years in Goiesti. Now the "veterans" are joined by peers from Simnicu de Sus. Interaction, new acquaintances and social learning become bonuses in all age groups.

UNIQUE OFFER. The hours the children spend in Adina Home are useful and welcome moments since there is no similar program in the public sector in this area. Several of the children live within a reasonable walking distance from the center, while others have to spend the afternoons at Adina Home so that there is a local bus and other transport to the villages. The attendance lists over the years say that many of them do not miss a single hour, regardless of weather and season. And our employees cannot wish for a better certificate.

OUR MOTTO. Properly organized social activities and after-school homework help from qualified staff are important elements in all of Adina's action plans and in line with our motto; - We build people. Over the years, there are plenty of examples of skills and interests unleashed in our environment that have influenced career choices later in life.

BUILDING ROBOTS. Data is popular and there are rarely any free spaces in front of the PCs that are located in the quiet room, in the library. In our own house we can also run RoboMech Adina Club much easier. Here, the children's abilities for interaction are developed, and everyone is challenged on practical skills when small robots full of parts are to be built together and programmed to perform the most fantastic tasks. Nice to know that the Adina gang is doing well in national competitions around Romania.

INSPIRES. It is conceivable that the activities related to RoboMech Adina Club mean that some of our girls or boys later choose to focus on the ICT subject. The best among programmers and web designers are among the best paid employees in today's Romania.

COMPREHENSIVE. Our staff in Simnicu de Sus will also run an open kindergarten in six different places in the district where a total of 60 children participate. All in all, in all age groups, around 220 children participate in our various activities. In addition, staff and volunteers follow up 10 families through Home Start.

Bold dreams come true in the greenhouse Adina Home

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Adina Home will be developed into a greenhouse and a meeting place in the local community. We will nurture children and young people with bold dreams, faith in their own skills and a future in Romania.

TEXT AND PHOTO: MAGNE REIGSTAD

In the pig-ridden areas we work, there is a need for a meeting place where children, teenagers, parents and grandparents can meet. Everyone should feel welcome in the yellow house with the red roof.

- The Balder Foundation has believed in the project and our visions, and provided the necessary funds so that good forces in Norway and Romania can realize the plans, says chairman of the board of Fundatia Adina Foundation, Ove Haugsdal. He believes that Adina Home in itself is a solid example of how dreams can come true.

The foundation is now taking root in Simnicu de Sus, which is less than a mile outside the regional capital Craiova. We get closer to the villages where the children and families live. In the house, the Foundation's employees get along well with armbands and good facilities for innovation around our role in the local community. We are welcomed by a host municipality led by modern elected officials and bureaucrats who have seen that Adina leaves its mark on the local community.

We do not compete with the city's culture house, but dance groups become part of the activities. Folklore and dance build identity and even out differences among children with very different backgrounds. Folk dance develops community between the age groups, and in Adina Home there will be enough space to unfold at all levels for everyone who wants to.

The house will have its own quiet room where we will give young people an introduction to the use of PCs for useful things such as writing applications, collecting material for school assignments and learning to use a library of books in both Romanian and English. And we get plenty of space for RoboMech, which teases the participants in both interaction and programming of self-built robots. We already have groups participating in national competitions in Bucharest. Garne's school has made a huge effort with equipment and transferred knowledge that forms a solid foundation for further investment.

We are gaining recognition for the way we run Home Start in our villages. Now we get better opportunities to follow up and educate our adult volunteers, and the women get as a pure bonus experience to put on a possible CV and a useful network.

The city's top is working to modernize the municipality's water and sewer network, and they are upgrading the roads to the villages. Simnicu de Sus develops into a suburb of the big city. It provides a basis for better communication, which makes it easier for children and adults to get to and from the activities in Adina Home.

Heavy years of childhood do not slow down Corina-Maria's plans

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Corina-Maria has had a tough upbringing, but her goal is clear. She wants to be a teacher and work with children. This autumn, she will go to Bucharest with a will to win and solid grades in her luggage.

TEXT: LUMINITA DINCA PHOTO: MAGNE REIGSTAD

- It's okay to get a job in Bucharest when you are a trained teacher. I can not imagine a profession where I sit in front of a computer all day, says Corina-Maria Vlad. She has been part of Adina's Education Program since March 2018.

In May, she received official recognition from Dolj County Municipality for her good results in school. Corina-Maria came in third place in the national competition in the subjects psychology and pedagogy. She has achieved very good grades at all school levels, and the goal is quite clear - to become a teacher in primary school.

She is a hardworking, ambitious and strong girl who wants to succeed in building a better future for herself. She likes to share her thoughts, and is very grateful that she met the Adina Foundation's team. - Adina taught me to think big. They said I had to believe in my own abilities, then I will manage. The conversations and advice from them were important to me, she says.
The next stop is the teacher education in Bucharest. The next stop is the teacher education in Bucharest.

Corina-Maria lives with her grandmother in Celaru, a village about 40 kilometers from the city of Craiova, where she finished high school in the summer of 2019. Her grandmother has taken care of her since she was a little girl, and has given her what the schoolgirl needed most, love and patience.

Her parents divorced after 13 years of marriage. The mother left the family and took Corina's younger brother with her. The father struggled hard after the fracture. He tried to be reunited with his wife, but she would not. His father started drinking and died of alcoholism. But Corina's mother did not return home either.

It was a hard time for a little girl, but luckily she still had her grandmother. In 2006, her grandmother became her legal guardian. The grandmother is now 80 years old and completely dependent on a wheelchair due to joint problems. She prays to God every day to live a little longer, because as she says - that Corina will not be completely alone in the world.

Corina has had a far from easy start in life, but the will to win is intact. She has had to learn to be strong and fight for the goals she has set. Corina needs both material and moral support to be able to continue her education.

Cheers and cuddles when Aurelia and Cassandra come to visit

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Aurelia is a volunteer in our Home Start program. Join now as she visits the Guineru family. It is easy to see why this scheme is worth its weight in gold for children in disadvantaged families.

TEXT AND PHOTO: MAGNE REIGSTAD

Adina's red car is a familiar sight in the countryside outside Craiova. Children and adults at the roadside wave as our well-used Dacia rolls by. Cassandra is behind the wheel and as a coordinator for the volunteers she has become well acquainted with the road standard in the villages. It is dusty violently on the rough gravel road. The sun is shining from a cloudless Romanian sky, it is 33 summer degrees and windless.

Today we give a ride to Aurelia Longu (30) who will visit the Guineru family in the village of Golombo, a drive approx. 45 kilometers away from the big city. Aurelia is in the third year of the Home Start program, and must be counted among the veterans in the corps of adult volunteers that the Fundatia Adina Foundation has built up.

Mother and father Guineru have nine children in the herd. The oldest have left, two of the middle ones are still in high school, while the youngest are waiting anxiously for Aurelia. They know that this will be a real cuddle day where the little ones get all the attention for a total of two hours. We meet them up in the yard, but their dog marks all too clearly that it does not like strangers and we pull away to neutral grounds.

Aurelia and the three little ones settle under a shady tree while Cassandra tries to get enough air in a included football. There is reading time under the tree and cards are played. The toddlers whisper confidants to Aurelia who listens and asks with one child on each knee. She is a single mother with two children herself, but this surplus person finds time to care for others. She knows the little ones desperately need attention. Once a week, Aurelia is picked up by Cassandra and driven to the flock of children in Golombo.

Then it's time for football with a ball without air, but who cares about the equipment when it can be played so the dust is around the ball and legs. Bowling with ball and empty bottles is arranged, and we adults receive clear instructions from the little ones who control the show.

Dad Marian comes cycling by in the scorching sun. He works on the farms in the neighborhood, and gets a solid dose of hugs from his little ones before he steps on to the next employer. Tonight, his kids have a lot to tell about when he gets home, such as how bad some of the adults were at throwing punctured ball in the bottle.

Then the two-hour visit ends with genuine hugs and assurances that Aurelia and Cassandra will return next week as well. The key to Home Start's success lies in the words attention and play - so simple and so effective.

Full speed ahead on the construction site for Adina Home

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Spring has really taken hold in Simnicu de Sus, and the construction workers are back after the "winter break". Now there is full speed ahead for Adina Home so that the building is completed at the agreed time.

TEXT AND PHOTO: MAGNE REIGSTAD

The soil on the construction site dried up the first week of March. Heavy rain showers and heavy snowfall led to a lot of soil running down on the lower concrete sole. The people had to bring out the shovels and clean up by hand. The iron binders have trampled together the constructions that will be in the foundation wall itself, and thus it is ready for the next round of casting. The municipality has erected new poles and brought the necessary electricity to the actual construction period.

The building committee, which consists of both Norwegian and Romanian board members, has worked its way through a long checklist to avoid, as far as possible, something being forgotten and coming as a surprise at the end of the construction period. In addition, the general manager of Craiova Luminita Dinca and board member Robert Iriza will monitor the progress of the project.

The contractor Rescomt assures us that he is on schedule, and he will eventually put on more people. The company is headquartered in Simnicu de Sus, and there is a good deal of prestige in delivering a great building on time. The paradox is that in Romania there is a severe shortage of professionals. The contractor still dares to say that the building will be ready for takeover at the end of August / beginning of September. This is ideal for us related to starting school.

The staff of Fundatia Adina The foundation in Craiova is looking forward to moving out of the center and closer to the villages where we have children and young people who are part of our program. There are good bus connections between the city and Simnicu de Sus. The mayor and deputy mayor are looking forward to Adina Home coming into operation because they know all too well that there are no similar offers in this area.

Our collaboration with the Church's City Mission yields results

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The Fundatia Adina Foundation has become the national center for Home Start in Romania. The program, which started in collaboration with the Church City Mission Foundation in Bergen, has been a success in the villages outside Craiova.

The collaboration started four years ago and the event was marked in Bergen on 5 April. Ove Haugsdal, who started the Adina Foundation, presented a Romanian icon as a tangible expression that Adina values the collaboration with the Church's City Mission. Both organizations have in common that they exist for fellow human beings who struggle in everyday life. The need is present both in the welfare state of Norway and in Romania, which has a long way to go before benefits are distributed a little more evenly.

Our employees in Craiova were on a week-long study trip to Bergen four years ago, and went home with both skepticism and optimism in their luggage. The content of the concepts of volunteering and volunteer work was rather distant in the poor Romanian countryside. Today, the word volunteer is included in the vocabulary of those we are in contact with, and the word can be read in documents from the EEA.

The employees from the Church's City Mission were on a study trip south, and were shocked by the poverty they encountered when they visited the families in the countryside. The City Mission's employees also visited various SFOs and kindergartens. A hybrid model of the global Home Start scheme was created, and our variant was named New Start. This name variant became more precise and rich in content than anyone had imagined. Today we have a solid core of committed volunteers who go on home visits, and in addition we run Open Kindergarten based on a model from Bergen.

Home Start and everything that follows in the wake, results-oriented knowledge transfer is the shortest way out to disadvantaged families. The start-up with own and qualified project staff was possible thanks to EEA funds. The Fundatia Adina Foundation has also become an important interlocutor for local authorities when the topic is poverty reduction, schooling and social exclusion.

We never distinguish between Roma and ethnic Romanians. During more than 15 years of efforts in one of Europe's poorest counties, we have experienced that social distress affects everyone, but we have also seen the result that it is useful to help people at home, regardless of ethnic origin.

Adina is building her own activity house in Romania

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The dream of a separate house in Romania will come true. The plot is secured, the drawings finished. The design process is now underway, and the material will be sent out for tender to three local contractors.

The financial foundation under this major investment is secured. The boards in Romania and Norway are pushing for as much of the construction work as possible to be completed before next winter. The host municipality Simnicu de Sus welcomes the Fundatia Adina Foundation (FAS). The municipality has given us free space and so far in the process has been very efficient in its case processing.

Whether it will be a wooden building, prefabricated building or a concrete / masonry house will be assessed on the basis of the prices we receive and the construction time for the various methods. The house is tailored to our purpose. Here, the employees in Craiova and the board in Norway have worked closely together to get the most out of the square meters.

The building is furnished in accordance with Norwegian requirements for access to rooms where children and young people stay. At the same time, we ensure our employees good jobs and opportunities for expansions. This is a utility building where there can be a lot of traffic of both children, young people and adults, and we are investing in solid qualities to keep maintenance costs down.

The building will be approx. 370 square meters and was designed by an architect in the regional capital Craiova. He has not paid for the work because he knows us and will support the work the Adina Foundation does for the disadvantaged in the villages outside the big city.

The plot is just under four acres, and has been attached for 50 years. This means that when the economy allows it, the unused area can be developed and used for organized outdoor activities. Adina Home is close to the middle school and a kindergarten. This is a great advantage in terms of transport options for those who will be involved in our activities.

When we start such a large project in Romania, it is because after more than 15 years in the country we have received enough confirmations that it is useful to help people where they live. Those who participate in our programs are motivated to complete schooling and take higher education.

We build people, and translated into practical action means running SFOs, Open Kindergarten and Home Start. The latter is aimed at disadvantaged families. A separate house will enable FAS to establish activities that appeal to young people who have become too old for SFO.

The house will also be an important meeting place for our adult volunteers. De ca. The 30 women who work for us need regular professional replenishment, and they need to be able to discuss experiences and experiences from working outside the families. FAS works in one of Europe's poorest districts, but parents show an enormous willingness to create a better future for their children. The interaction between FAS, the families, the children, the young people and local authorities is the very platform during our activities, and the results are measurable.

Builds the self-image of young village girls

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Friends Bianca and Loreana are building a network that will make young girls more aware of how valuable they are. The nineteen-year-olds themselves know how tough it is to grow up in a poor village in Romania.

TEXT AND PHOTO: MAGNE REIGSTAD

Drop out. Romanian girls can get married - or get married off when they are 16 years old, and in some environments when the girls are even younger. Once the marriage is established, it usually means the end of schooling for the girls. Then there are completely different duties that await them in line with family traditions and demands from their new environment in the village. As many as 50 percent of girls who marry early drop out of school, recent figures show.

Heavy pressure. Bianca Baloi knows a lot about the sometimes intense pressure young girls are subjected to from the village boys, and sweet music can arise. - We use role play in the courses and explain to the girls that they can be both friendly and determined, and at the same time be liked and respected in the village, Bianca says.

Well worded. She herself has embarked on preparatory language studies. - The goal is to become a translator, Bianca says in well-formulated English. After finishing school, her friend Loreana Tuca got a job at a pizza bakery in Craiova. Loreana has become a financially independent young woman who thrives at work. In this way, the nineteen-year-olds become role models for both younger and peer sisters.

Simple conditions. The staff of the Adina Foundation in Craiova took their friends on a basic course in Bucharest. Bianca and Loreana have been part of our program since they went to SFO in Goiesti, and both come from hard-working families who live in simple conditions. Their parents believe that schooling is crucial to getting out of poverty.

Refuses. So far, 21 girls have participated in the Adina courses, but it is not always easy to get girls to join the courses. Sometimes it is due to the family's situation, other reasons are that the young girls feel so poor that they do not want to show their poverty to strangers.

Runs off. Loreana and Bianca are also in contact with the course participants' families to explain to them why it is so important that girls do not get married until they finish school.

- If the marriage ends, or the husband runs away, then the girl and her family are left with children and no school papers, little social assistance and zero job opportunities. In such a situation, it is easy for a girl to fall victim to stupid solutions. If, on the other hand, you have completed schooling, it is entirely possible to get a job, says Bianca, who in her spare time works as a volunteer for the Adina Foundation, just like her mother.

Solid recognition of the efforts in Romania

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The Fundatia Adina Foundation has become a full member of the worldwide Home Start network. A solid recognition of the work done by staff and volunteers in Romania.

TEXT AND PHOTO: MAGNE REIGSTAD

- There is no doubt that we fill a need in many disadvantaged families in the countryside outside Craiova, says Hilde Sandnes, general manager of the Adina Foundation. She is rightly proud of what a small but efficient organization has achieved in Romania in close and targeted collaboration with the Church's City Mission in Bergen.

- The impact, need and results in the local community are actually easy to measure. We see that more young people from what we can call their own ranks now sign up to work as volunteers for what began under the name New Start. These know from their own experiences and local knowledge that there are many families who need a fellow human being to talk to, says Sandnes.

SILENT REVOLUTION. The mothers who are the mainstays of our New Start program have caused a quiet revolution in several of the homes they visit. These are tough women with roots in the local community. They spend three hours each week on free work for the benefit of others. Volunteering, volunteer work, free work for the benefit of others - call it what you will, is in itself a significant social upheaval in rural Romania. When we want to know more about their experiences, it is a common thread in the conversations that the women themselves have benefited greatly from getting so close to other families' living conditions.

NEW FRIENDSHIP. Many say in clear words that they now appreciate their own more than they did before they started as volunteers. One of them has also had his son on assignment, and it has resulted in new friendships. The mother of a small child believes that the insight into the situation of others has made her more patient with her own children, and that she has become better at listening at home.

- I was a little nervous about the star, admits Aurelia (28) who was close to escaping from the whole program after the first hour at her visiting family's home. But the relationship changed quickly, and today Aurelia is considered a family member.

THE PIG IN THE FREEZER. A little outside the program, Aurelia had to teach her mother in the visiting family how to take better care of the food. - The mother had put a whole freshly slaughtered pig carcass in the freezer. I explained to her that it was smarter to divide the animal into small portions, and she greatly appreciated this lesson, says Aurelia and pulls on the smiley face now that it has all come a long way.

Aurelia says that having come so close to other families has changed a lot in herself. - Now I am more satisfied with what I have while before I just wanted more and more. I also value playing with my own children more, says the 28-year-old.

Ani (34) is herself a great-grandmother and gave birth to her first child very young. In her visiting family, the mother had her firstborn at a young age, and Ani experiences that the mother in the house also needs an adult woman from outside to consult as the group of young people grows. The same good relationships built on mutual respect also exist between Ani and father in the house who are more or less unemployed.

CLEAR MESSAGE. Gica (32) received a very good reception in her family. The confirmation comes from the children themselves when they say to their mother in clear words: - Now you are silent, we will talk to Gica! Our woman says she meets a family where the parents are very aware that the children will finish school. Gica hopes that the changes she has seen in the family will continue, but little money and poor living conditions stress them severely.

PROFITABLE PROJECT. New Start costs money, but the women who have gained experience in the field agree that the scheme must continue. "Our" mothers have experienced varying levels of knowledge among their fellow sisters, and it is not easy to take care of the house when living conditions are miserable. During the winter, adults and children often move together in one room and sleep in the same bed to get the best possible benefit from the heating. Toilets and running water are rare, and firewood is expensive in an area where winters can be quite cold.

Good friends always support each other

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Friends Alin and Gheorghe got to know each other when they volunteered at an Adina market. The friendship that was established at a young age in Craiova, has come in handy during his studies. They have put a heavy start behind them and are now studying IT and medicine.

TEXT AND PHOTO: MAGNE REIGSTAD
- We would not have gotten to where we are today without the push and the support we received from the Adina Foundation, emphasizes Alin Ciuca and Gheorghe Madalin. The first studies medicine, the second IT. Both are confident that they will make good money when their study time is over. The friends have been part of our education programs, and have proven that it is smart to help people where they live.

CURIOUS. Gheorghe thrives on IT subjects and his goal is to become a skilled programmer. - I was a very curious boy who always wanted to know a lot. Fortunately, the teacher was a type who gave us much more than he was committed to, recalls Gheorghe who was encouraged to study mathematics.
But the family barely had the means and therefore he was connected with the people of Adina in Craiova. He made a deal and was helped to continue on his way to school. Young Madalin was frugal as a ballast from home and during this period managed to save enough for a guitar.

MUSIC IMPORTANT. - We all need something that nourishes our dreams. The guitar stimulated learning, and music has developed into a hobby. I was actually a very introverted person in my younger years, says a talkative Gheorghe.

Gheorghe comes from a village forty miles outside Craiova. On the weekends, he takes the train home to the boys' room where he trims his brain with a puzzle he received as a gift from his girlfriend. In his time, his family lived well with a father who worked at the locomotive factory in the big city. Then the factory was closed and things got complicated for the family. Therefore, there was little financial help to bring home in difficult adolescence, but he praises mother and father for always supporting his choice of path.

ORPHAN. His friend Alin Ciuca, has barely known his biological parents. Alin lived in an orphanage until he was three years old. There he was picked up by a married couple. They wanted to adopt Alin, but the Romanian paper mill worked slowly until the boy turned 16 years old. When everything seemed to work out, the husband died and the widow was not allowed to adopt the boy who had lived with her for 13 years.

Then followed conflict-filled adolescence with a "reserve mother" who was now in her mid-fifties. Alin broke up with her and was taken care of by the child welfare service until he turned 18. Via the child welfare service, he also came into contact with the Adina Foundation.

DEEP DOWN. The study path started crooked for Alin who is now studying medicine. - I was simply deep down. Mom said I was too stupid to study when I started in IT, and it worked poorly. I knew neither out nor in and wanted to take my own life, he says.

Adina and the child welfare service motivated Alin to study further - but now it became medicine. The system in Romania is such that if you run the study via the Internet, this is cheaper and thus financially possible for Alin. Now he is hanging over the medicine books for the third year.

THE SUPPORTERS. His friend Madalin helped him through the crises and with sorting out goals and the exams he had to go through. - And Adina's people had time to listen when I needed someone to talk to, Alin says. He has also restored contact with his mother (60) and step-sister (40) who have supported him in all crises.

In Romania, it has become a national challenge that young sharp-headed people seek lucrative pastures abroad. Madalin is aware that he will remain in the country, but perhaps with a short period out. Alin says it like this: - If I am to become a really good doctor, there are limited opportunities in Romania. Therefore, I will go out, but I will return.

Alone father ended up in the poverty trap unjustifiably

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Robert Rotaru was left alone with three children when his wife left him. Thus, he is barred from taking work outside the village and has unjustifiably ended up in poverty.

TEXT AND PHOTO: MAGNE REIGSTAD

Rotaru worked abroad for many years. The income ensured the family a usable standard of living in the village, which means that they largely did not have to ask the public for help. But in the last year, life has changed dramatically for both the father of the family and Mirela (12), Lucian (9) and Eduard (5). The elder girl has married and moved out.

LOVE THE CHILDREN. - I love my children, they are the most important thing for me now, but I am also important to them, says the construction worker who occasionally manages to get small jobs in the local area so that he is always at home when the children are finished in kindergarten and school. Over the past year, Mirela has participated in the Adina Foundation's SFO twice a week and has long since revealed herself about a school-good and dexterous girl

The mother left her husband and children in 2015, and stays in the big city of Craiova a half hour drive away. Robert knows she works as a prostitute and is heavily intoxicated. The husband says that he has made several attempts to get his wife back home, but has now given up. He wants to divorce, but it is not an easy process for him to complete since a divorce involves two parties and costs money.

ADDICTED TO DRINKING. - I married my wife because I loved her, says a resigned husband who had to watch his wife become more and more addicted to drinking every time he came home.

For the past year, the family of four has had weekly visits from one of the volunteers in the Adina Foundation's New Start program. That means two hours of reading, cuddling and puzzles on the children's terms. Our social workers also visit the family regularly, and talk to the children at the after-school center and at the preschool. They know that Mirela is embarrassed about what her mother is doing, but her daughter never speaks negatively about her.

ORDER MAN. The father of three has order in his own house, a house of usable standard where he unfortunately does not get to make all the improvements because he now has neither money nor enough time. Indoors, everything is ironed and stacked. Husfar has pickled vegetables and fruit for the winter. In the basement there are glasses and bottles on joints. The self-produced is next to the cartons of flour and olive oil that he has received as pure emergency aid from the authorities and the EU system. It is not necessary to beg for a living in Romania. Robert also keeps a couple of pigs to secure the family meat for the winter.

Mirela (right) has taken after her father's sense of order. We join the 12-year-old in the tidy girls' room where the backpack and school books are ready for the next day. The creative girl shows us rings and earrings made of extremely simple materials and she has also sewn an entire collection of clothes and bags for the Barbie dolls. Color choices and cuts reveal imagination and creative joy.

MOTHER-IN-LAW FAILS. In Romania, it is very common for grandmothers to step in when families break up or need a helping hand when the adults have to travel to make money. Robert's mother-in-law consistently refuses to help him and his grandchildren so that the construction worker could have the opportunity to work a little more. The children's grandmother justifies her dismissive attitude with the fact that Robert is to blame for the daughter's drinking and that it has gone downhill with her.

The Adina community taught Kiki to dream

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Cristiana Dobre proves every day that hard work pays off for those who want to build a future in Romania. The 21-year-old is studying medicine in Craiova and she is a real Adina product.

TEXT AND PHOTO: MAGNE REIGSTAD

MEET NORWEGIANS. Cristiana or Kiki as we all call her, laughs well when she tells about her first meeting with the Adina Foundation. She had never seen foreigners before she met Norwegians at our SFO in Goiesti. And it was thanks to our dance group that the young girl got outside the village and abroad for the first time. Here Kiki became very annoyed with herself because she did not understand a syllable when people around her spoke English. Therefore, she set out to learn the language and the energy bundle reached its goal quickly.

- The Adina community taught me to dream, but also to understand that if you work hard you can do everything. I also realized how important it is to care for others, says the student who was also part of our education program for a while.

CHANGED COURSE. Our teachers at the SFO soon discovered that Kiki was immensely good with her fingers, and the skills brushed her off on a school journey towards a future profession as a dental technician. - But I gradually realized that this was not the right education for me, sitting day after day doing more or less the same, Kiki says. Therefore, she embarked on the considerably heavier and longer study of medicine.

NOT POOR. Kiki is crystal clear that the family is the most important starting point for everyone, and having your roots in a safe and good family influences many of your decisions throughout life.

- I do not come from a poor family even as we have little money. I've learned that money is not everything. It is far more important that those around you believe in your abilities and support you. If you have a family to build on, you can achieve a lot, says Kiki and smiles at his mother.

ADINA METHODS. Ana is rightly proud of her daughter. Ana now works as a volunteer for the Adina Foundation in Craiova because she has seen that the Adina method has given results for both of her twin daughters. Ana calls it paying back. She has seen the effect of our New Start program over the past year, and will continue as a volunteer.

SOFTER MOTHER. - Mother has changed quite a lot since she started working for Adina. Mother has become a little softer at the edges, Kiki comments with a smile at the same time as she emphasizes that it is very nice to be able to go home to the village and the family every Friday.

POSSIBILITIES. Romania is struggling with high unemployment and many greedy heads are leaving the country to earn a living. Kiki's analysis of the possibilities is simple: - In this country, there are small prospects for a job if you do not know anything, but people who have an education and who want something, can create big changes in our country as well, the 21-year-old believes.

Lego robots from Garnes come to Goiesti

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In May, the First Lego League team RoboMech travels to Goiesti to learn the tricks of building and controlling Lego robots so that their Romanian peers qualify for the First Lego League.

TEXT AND PHOTO: MAGNE REIGSTAD

At Garnes school, the course is practiced with students in 5th grade as participants and students in 6th grade as course assistants. The students are very talented, thought our people in Romania - Luminita Dinca, Luminita Cirloganescu and Carmen Constatin. The other day they were visiting our fantastic supporter in Arna, and here they got a small demo of what both children and robots can accomplish.

Both the students at Garnes skule and Robo Mech participate every year in the FLL tournament at VilVite in Bergen, where both teams have reaped honor and glory. The students at Garnes assure us that this is something their peers in Goiesti will take quickly, not least because it is so much fun.

Trond Skutlaberg at Garnes skule is, together with Runar Eikhaug at Ulsmåg school, team leader on the FLL team RoboMech. Both are responsible for the First Lego League programs at their schools. Skutlaberg never has problems motivating students. They like to work on solving the tangles even after school, and according to some of them this is at least as much fun as football.

Over 300,000 children and young people in 80 countries take part in the major worldwide competitions. These are first-class tools for promoting good collaboration, and the understanding of programming is something students need in adulthood.

Along one wall in the classroom is a row of laptops, and here the young engineers have to come in to program the robots to drive, turn and stop in the right place. The robots roll off in a bin with painted lines, and here it is important to enter the correct values on the PC so that the robots do not start on their own and do damage to themselves or others in the robot bin.

Skutlaberg says that the actual Lego parts for the kits are quite affordable, and that you do not need very powerful PCs to program and control them.

Once the basic work is done in Romania, RoboMech and the students at Garnes and Ulsmåg will follow up on their friends - and perhaps future competitors, via Skype.

Going to Goiesti brings both computers and robots. Luminita Dinca - our general manager in Craiova, say those in the south who want to volunteer with IT-savvy people. The participants at RoboMech who join are aged 10-14 years.

Garnes has collaborated with the Adina Foundation since 2008, and the funds from the action days in Arna help some of the poorest children in Europe. Saturday 20 February is this year's action day for the benefit of the Adina Foundation's work in Romania.

Wonderful moments with the New Start families

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Violent hugs and immediate contact with the children. This is what meets the volunteers who do the work in the News Start program in Romania.

TEXT AND PHOTO: MAGNE REIGSTAD

We follow Mona Nicolae and Adriana Cicoare who will visit the Gainaru family. The family lives in a village a few miles outside Craiova. Mother is expecting with her eighth child. The oldest boy in the herd is 16 years old and is in high school. The youngest child has to hang on to his mother for a few more months. Dad has some work occasionally, and the family's livelihood is in reality social benefits.

Due. They have a garden around the house with space for a pigsty and they grow some vegetables for their own use. The house they live in is what Norwegians would describe as dilapidated and so are the outbuildings. Scrap and clutter everywhere and large stacks of winter wood. It is easy to understand that it is a holiday for the youngest kids when Mona and Adriana from the New Start program come to visit.

Simple tool. The two volunteers are the course of people from the Church's City Mission and our people in the Fundatia Adina Foundation in Craiova. The scheme is financed with EEA funds. Mona and Adriana bring with them simple "tools", a book to read from and browse in, a deck of cards, a puzzle and the desire to play with the children. The children get full attention to their premises for two hectic hours.

Selfie. Selfies are read and snapped with Mona's mobile phone, in many ways a very ordinary afternoon in families with a normal family situation and dignified living conditions. There is competition between sisters Aurelia and Roddica for reading skills, and who puts the puzzle together the fastest. Aurelia is also a master of mathematics.

Selfie. Selfies are read and snapped with Mona's mobile phone, in many ways a very ordinary afternoon in families with a normal family situation and dignified living conditions. There is competition between sisters Aurelia and Roddica for reading skills, and who puts the puzzle together the fastest. Aurelia is also a master of mathematics.

Great. Mother and father rejoice with the little girls, and they think it's great to get visits from the New Start women. They do not regard this as interference in the family's "internal affairs." The parents know with themselves that they rarely have time to take care of the children in this way, and they see that this stimulates the children. Unfortunately, in the poorest families, every day has enough of itself.

Invaders. We feel like intruders, but are well received. It is so poor around us that it is incomprehensible that people can live like this, that children have to grow up in such houses and surroundings. In winter they fire in the small rooms, while in summer it is more than warm enough, and good to seek shade under the dilapidated roof in front of the front door.

Wise spending. The volunteer helpers in the New Start program have different formal backgrounds. It ranges from being a mother with solid life experience from the countryside to a designer and economist. The volunteers had not been involved in similar activities before, but agree that this is a wise use of EEA funds. They also see that parents learn a lot about their children when they see how they flourish with the New Start helpers. Useful knowledge. Mona Nicolae and Adriana Cicoare are two of 11 volunteers. They are both self-employed, but take time off a couple of times a month to go out to a poverty they barely knew existed so close to the big city of Craiova. This is how the helpers bring knowledge back to the larger community, ie a pure bonus for the program. The families participating in New Start have been selected in consultation with local authorities and the school.

Spout and drive in Open Kindergarten

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An anniversary year for Adina Foundation Uganda, it is allowed to use such big words when we note that 175 children were treated under our auspices in 2016.

The scheme that the partnership Kirkens Bymisjon / Fundatia Adina Stiftelsen runs in Goiesti outside the city of Craiova is well-proven in Bergen. But can the ideas be transferred to a periphery in another country? It has exceeded all expectations. The municipality makes premises available, our minibus picks up and brings large and small and the operation is financed with funds from the EEA.

Full speed. The children come with adults once a week to Open Kindergarten. Alexandra Mitracha (27) says that through the play here she has discovered new sides in her boy. According to the mother, the explanation is that in kindergarten they have the opportunity to unfold in a completely different way than at home. Most are controlled by mothers and children, but with them are professionals who make sure that no small troll is left on the sidelines. There is no question of ethnic origin, everyone is equal and equally welcome.

The scheme that the partnership Kirkens Bymisjon / Fundatia Adina Stiftelsen runs in Goiesti outside the city of Craiova is well-proven in Bergen. But can the ideas be transferred to a periphery in another country? It has exceeded all expectations. The municipality makes premises available, our minibus picks up and brings large and small and the operation is financed with funds from the EEA.

Full speed. The children come with adults once a week to Open Kindergarten. Alexandra Mitracha (27) says that through the play here she has discovered new sides in her boy. According to the mother, the explanation is that in kindergarten they have the opportunity to unfold in a completely different way than at home. Most are controlled by mothers and children, but with them are professionals who make sure that no small troll is left on the sidelines. There is no question of ethnic origin, everyone is equal and equally welcome.

Active school environment. In the area that is close to the kindergarten in Goiesti, people live scattered, and public transport is rather small. An interesting and pleasant side effect of the whole project is that mothers of young children get to know each other. New relationships are built and the mothers become part of an active school environment - as we Norwegians know that a real district school can work.

Good contacts. - The lessons in the kindergarten give us a little break, says Alexandra. She sits on the floor and follows a toddler who really unfolds in play with peers. The family lives two kilometers away from the school, but Alexandra does not know many in the local community. During the visits to the kindergarten, Alexandra has had good contact with a mother of small children of the same age - Geta Motacanu (27).

Great-grandmother dances. The oldest on the floor is Cati Serbanciu (70). Great-grandmother poses when mom and dad are busy. And Cati does not shy away from any rounds of folk dancing and traditional toys. The oldest - and the young mothers participate in an environment where the kids have a great time, and the adults get tips and thoughts to take home.

Free food. Parents who have children in Open Kindergarten must enter into a contract with the Adina Foundation. This is partly due to the fact that the children and the adults get a meal, and the food is ordered from outside. The meal is an important element in the whole program and everything is free for children and mothers. It is not a given that all children get enough food at home. The money invested in the project is used with maximum dividend.

TEXT AND PHOTO: MAGNE REIGSTAD

The mother is bullied because she does not want to beg

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Adina-Maria's mother (pictured) is being bullied by other Roma people because she does not want to start begging to support the family. The mother says she prefers to sweep the streets of Craiova to support the family and give the children a proper education.

We visit the room family in their block of flats on the outskirts of Craiova. Angelica is happy with the apartment, but admits that it is cold and expensive to stay here in the winter. Then an awful lot of money is spent on heating, and the apartment is at least made for 11 people to live here, the mother thinks. Therefore, they are working on building a new and more spacious house. The family has received help from Norwegian helpers, but construction is slow when funds are limited.

You quickly sense that Angelica Constatin (42) is the boss of the house. She is a fighter, and it spreads to the children. Decent but strict work plans have been made for which of the children will help with what on a daily basis. School work has a high priority in the whole family. Education is the key to a safer life, the mother believes. The youngest go to middle school and the two oldest to high school.

And the children deliver results the mother is rightly proud of, we read from the numbers in the grade book. One of the daughters - Adina-Maria (17), is part of the education program of the Fundatia Adina Foundation. She struggles with epilepsy, and occasionally needs an extra helping hand with schoolwork.

It is completely inappropriate for the adult mother and the rest of this space family to give up the principles of honest work and education, even if they are affected by serious incidents - such as when one of the boys died 12 years old after becoming infected with HIV. Now mother Angelica and the eldest son are at work, while the father in the house is looking for work. It is not easy to get a steady income in today's Romania, but the attitude is never to give up.

Cosmin-Florian (15) is clear on what he will focus on after school. - Car mechanic because then it is possible to get a job, he says firmly.

We ask the family if they are considering leaving the country as many of Romania's Roma do. Angelica says that she would like to travel to make money if she had the opportunity, but today this is not relevant. - And I will never start begging, neither in Romania nor abroad, she says. Her husband does not rule out that he will go out, but only if he has a job to go to. He has previously been a seasonal worker on farms in several European countries, something he enjoyed very much.

Will not steal or beg to survive

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Aurelia (pictured) and Roxana Mihai belong to the space people, but mother and daughter can never imagine begging or stealing to make ends meet. You can survive with honest work, say the two who know the bad reputation many of the space people have acquired both in and outside Romania

Mother Aurelia (42) and daughter Roxana (23) live on the outskirts of Craiova. The apartment consists of one room which is both living room and bedroom. The kitchen is partially outside in the backyard. They do not complain about living conditions, but are anxious about the future in case the homeowner decides to sell. - We have searched for 10 years for a municipal apartment, but have not received an answer, the mother says. The man left her when Roxana was nine years old so there is little help to be had from that edge.

- A new marriage is completely out of the question, it holds with a bad experience, the 42-year-old believes.

Roxana has been part of our programs for almost 10 years, and receives some financial help from the Fundatia Adina Foundation for schooling. The goal is to get into the university, but then she has to work even harder to improve her grades, she says. Once the education has been completed, she would like to work for a non-profit organization to be able to provide help in return as a thank you for the support she has received.

- I might have been able to get more money out of the Romanian system, but I do not think it is appropriate to take advantage of my illness, says Roxana.

She is struggling with an illness that makes her mother have to stay at home. Aurelia worked for 12 years at the train station in Craiova, but now she receives a modest help from the authorities to be her daughter's personal assistant. When Roxana is at school, her mother tries to get small jobs. They have no family abroad that can help them with money.

- I do not like people who go abroad to beg or steal to earn a living. Such people should have been imprisoned, says Aurelia.

Roxana has a younger and an older sister who are both married.

A Christian view of life is the foundation on which the 23-year-old builds her life, and it is important for her to go to church every Sunday. - It helps me to get through the difficult days, she says.

Bergen youths help Romanians

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A group of 16 young people from Fana and Åsane have taken part in a unique EU project in the countryside in the poorest part of Romania. Here, the Romanians of the same age learned to organize leisure activities according to the Norwegian volunteer pattern

Seven hectic October days ended with a visit to the home of some of the Romanian children and teenagers who are part of an educational project. The Adina Foundation in Bergen runs in the village of Goiesti a few miles north of the city of Craiova. Several of the families who receive a helping hand live in poverty that is hardly believed to exist in Europe.

Shocked. - It is a shock to see such in reality, and it makes a strong impression to come home to people who have to live like that, says Elias Sandnes (16) from Sørås. He is a student at Nordahl Grieg High School. - I think it is useful to help the Romanians to get more out of their free time. The students get better grades and we know that none of "ours" drop out of the schools, says Elias.

Was impressed. Live O. Gilje from Salhus says she knew a little about the standard of living, but it impresses me that young Romanians have a positive view of the future as they have it at home. It was strong to see the differences in Romanian society where some lived in beautiful houses and other dilapidated sheds. We can not change an entire system, but it is possible to change and improve a little, Live believes.

The working title of the EU-funded youth project is TolerActive, which means that physical activity was the guiding principle - in addition to the fact that a total of 48 young people from Italy, Norway and Romania got to know each other. - The idea behind it is that tolerance is best built on knowledge of countries and people, says Hilde Sandnes, general manager of the Adina Foundation in Bergen.

Dugnad is contagious. All the young people were required to bring suggestions for activities that were then to be taught to children and leisure leaders in Goiesti. These were to be put into practice on an activity day in Goiesti. Organized leisure activities run on a voluntary basis are not widespread in rural Romania, but there are many indications that Norwegian ideas are contagious. Several of the Romanian young people were very motivated to make use of the handball and football tips from the Norwegians. The young people gained useful leadership experience as a bonus.

Activity day. As many as 85 children and teenagers showed up on the school grounds in Goiesti for what became a pure folk festival. The teams from Italy, Norway and Romania demonstrated exemplary cooperation. Tricks and systematic training were taught on the football field, while others taught the kids to jump over each other, a game that does not require expensive remedies. The Italians started with violent dance rhythms, and it struck a chord in a country where dance is a living element in folk culture.

A great job. The head of the Foundation Adina Foundation - Luminitia Dinca, was very pleased with the efforts of the supervisors from Fana, Åsane and the Puglia region.

- Everyone did a great job for the children from Goiesti, and there will be a long talk about this fantastic October day, says Luminitia Dinca who believes the event will stimulate more parents to let their children join the foundation's organized leisure activities after school.

Follows the money. The young people carried out the EU project in close collaboration with 16 young people from the Italian Puglia region and 16 young people from Goiesti. Everyone from the Bergen area has participated in various school actions for the Foundation Adina Foundation in Craiova, and during the week they got an insight into how part of the money is spent in the recipient country.

The cultural in the interaction between three very different nations gradually developed. The Italians baked pizza and the young people of Bergen taught the southern Europeans to like penny buns. There were hardly any crumbs left on the dish.

Sweating exercises. The "work week" in Craiova and Goiesti stretched from breakfast to dinner in the evening with planning and mingling. The latter was useful for gaining insight into the mindsets and behaviors of peers from southern Europe. And in between regular sweaty body exercises like Flash mob and Zumba ..

Community project

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The Local Community project has been developed in close collaboration with local authorities in the municipalities of Unirea, Diosti and Farcas. We build on the experiences we have gained and in step with development and needs in the local community.

We know that many poor children end their schooling prematurely, which often leads to a life of continued poverty and unemployment. The offer includes homework help, play and sports, identity-building and creative activities, training in social skills, guidance for children and parents, excursions, etc.

One to two afternoons a week, 20 children meet at each of the three places where in the spring of 2009 we started Project Community. The children have in common that their social and economic situation prevents them from taking an education that can give them a stable, secure and good future. We get very positive feedback on Project Community from local authorities, the school and the parents. The children are looking forward to the activities, they have broadened their horizons and are taking more initiative. We are looking forward to the continuation.

The offer will be a supplement to what the public authorities can offer. Project Local Community is mainly funded by private individuals through our sponsorship scheme.

Demanding educational program

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The education program offers financial support to young people who have completed 8th grade and who want to take higher education, but are stopped for financial reasons.

The young people are recruited from our other projects, and great demands are placed on the participants. They must all show that they are willing to work hard to change their own life situation. The education program is an offer for children from the other programs who want to continue their schooling after finishing primary school. Through the program, 43 young people receive support for education at upper secondary school / college / university level. The support is means-tested, and in return the young people must regularly report on their school situation. In the office premises of our subsidiary in Romania, there is also a separate room with a PC and a number of books where those who want to can do schoolwork and possibly get help in a quiet environment.

We work hard in the groups because the young people know that the only way out of poverty is through education. The participants see that more have succeeded, they support themselves and live an active and participatory life. The education fund is financed mainly through contributions from schools and private individuals.

Several of the young people in the program are HIV-positive, and for them it is special to experience that someone is willing to invest in their future. They make it clear that they have seldom experienced that those who know about their condition have asked them what they think about the future. It hurts.

The education program is funded by Metis upper secondary school in Bergen and Bergen private high school.