Break Poverty Cycle of Roma Children in Romania

In the future, with the money gained from Global Giving, Care2Travel hopes to create an after-school program for disadvantaged Roma youth. Unfortunately, the funds raised are not yet quite adequate to move forward with the full project. Currently, Care2Travel is in the primary stages of planning this after-school program but cannot move further without additional donations. With funding where it currently stands, Care2Travel is creating a week-long summer camp for Roma children to learn valuable skills that will lead to further success in their futures.

The summer camp will be in the final week of June, running from 8:30 in the morning until 2:00 in the afternoon. Monday will be dedicated to planning and coordinating by volunteers and Care2Travel coordinators, then Tuesday through Friday will be full of activities for the Roma children. Care2Travel expects about fifty children, who will be constantly supervised by ten foreign volunteers, five local volunteers, and two coordinators. The schedule will consist of both competitive and educational activities, all with the intention of building crucial skills and values. These include teamwork, manners, responsibility, kindness, empathy, and English language skills. The children will have the opportunity to compete for prizes related primarily to school, like pencils and journals. As food insecurity is a prevalent issue in the Roma community, lunch will be provided all days of the camp.

This day camp will further assist Care2Travel in reaching out and assisting the underprivileged Roma community. It will establish trust between the organization and the Roma children, making it easier to implement the after-school program in the future as relationships will have already been built. This will also allow the Roma children to be further involved in Care2Travel in the future, which will help better their English and solidify the skills and values introduced in the day camp.