Centrum rodiny

Centrum rodiny, n.o. („The Centre of the Family“) is a nonprofit organisation founded in 2005 in Bratislava. The organisation runs a community centre in Bazovského 6 street in Bratislava-Dúbravka, in the premises of a former kindergarden. Centrum rodiny offers regular freetime activities, educational, counseling and social activities for the community around, for people of all ages and backgrounds, including marginalised groups. At the same time, it offers space and support for those who want to share knowledge, talents, skills and time with others. Contrum rodiny promotes volunteering and encourages the community members to be active citizens and become a positive changemaker in the society. It serves as a networking and contact point for various organisations active in the field of prevention or help in difficult situations in life, especially focused on families, disadvantaged and vulnerable individuals. The centre offers venue for smaller and larger events. The center regularly cooperates with various companies, providing meaningful opportunities for corporate volunteering. Regular activities in the centre include: - Activities for mothers with children - Activities for people with autism - Low-threshold club Enter - Community kindergarden Klubík - Project MENORA – visiting and supporting retired people in their households - Weawing baskets and boxes - Knitting and crochetting course - sewing course - Chess club - English conversation - Dancing for parents with children - Social and counselling services - Collection of clothing, shoes, toys and commodities for families and individuals in need - Intergenerational creative workshops - intergenerational sports opportunities Recently, Centrum rodiny started a community kitchen, cooking for the children and their parents taking part in the regular activities. The community center organises and takes part in ecological activities, including reducing the amount of food waste by supermarkets. We have an agreement with the local supermarket and regularly collect food that is still usable but for various reasons not allowed to be further sold. We process this food in the community kitchen or distribute it further among the families in need. In the community garden surrounding the center, we give a chance to the people living in the blocks of flats around Centrum rodiny without their own garden to grow their fruits, vegetables and herbs, learn about their health benefits and get to know innovative recipies. Centrum rodiny supports the inclusion and employability of people with fewer opportunities by giving them the chance to work in the community kitchen or take care of the community garden and facilities of the community center. During the corona crisis, the community center organised activities supporting the fight against the pandemic, such as organising volunteers doing the shopping or psychological support of the elderly people in the community via telephone, sewing and distributing face masks, offering the space for testing. Although many physical activities and gatherings in the community center hat to be closed down during the corona pandemic, we created new ways of reaching the local community – such as organising regular online French language lessons, dancing and cooking lessons.