Heřmánek

Since 2006 OKD supports the Heřmánek halfway house in Karviná, in which adolescent children from children’s homes prepare for "adult" life. Heřmánek teaches them how to find their feet in common life situations and how to find a job.

If you walk down the Borovského street in Karviná, you will not realize what is behind the doors of this house, ordinary at first glance. Since 1999 it has been serving young people who up till then knew only the walls of children’s homes or diagnostic facilities. Common and usual things present for them the new, the unrecognized, raising concern. The Heřmánek halfway house teaches them how to find their feet in common life situations, how to find a job, or even how to become skilful in household. The clients learn how to go shopping, to know the value of money, to navigate through job advertisements and to get rid of the fear of everyday obligations. In Heřmánek there always live around 15 inhabitants.

The clients can use for example practice kitchen, workshop, bikes or the Internet. They can seek jobs without risking ending up under the bridge in case they would be unsuccessful at the first go. Without a functional background they would hardly find their own firm ground.

The director Jaromír Volný knows what he speaks about: !In the time when they stand behind the doors of a children’s home or a diagnostic facility, they have nowhere to go and are taken out of their glass-house into the world of hard reality. They don’t have money, experience, work and social habits, they are not capable of taking care of themselves. Although they try to make use of their freedom, they usually end up at the fringe of society. They don’t have enough responsibility and if they are not helped by anybody, they are inclined to problematic bunches, often become addicted to alcohol, drugs, prostitution, end up as homeless people of delinquents in prison. We try to offer them a helping hand."

More detailed information can be found at www.camomile.karvina.info.