Roma school workshop: 2009 and 2010

The headmaster of the large Roma school in Garcin, near Sacele, Brasov, Romania, asked us to build a workshop so that the children can learn woodworking skills, and so stand a better chance of finding a job and helping their families out of poverty when they leave school.  Again we worked with our good friend Daniel Hristea, from the Romanian charity FAST, who is doing so much to help the very poor Roma families and particularly their children. 

   The school is surrounded by the poor houses of the Roma village at Garcin. 

Progress December 2010

Various teams during 2010, including one from Methodist Central Hall, Plymouth, have completed the workshop.

Progress April 2010

‘STEPS’ Chairman and a friend, spent a week working on the outside of the workshop building.  Last year the outside walls were clad with OSD boards and the space between these boards and the internal plasterboard walls were filled with fibreglass. However it gets very cold in Garcin and extra insulation is required, so the two fitted polystyrene insulation and timber.

      

Progress November 2009

We received a generous grant from a management trust and this enabled us to complete some of the outstanding work and have central heating installed.

   

Progress September 2009

There were five people in the September team: Sue Dean, Lesley & Stephen Entwistle, Fiona Pearson and Meg Prowting.  They were helped by Romanians George, Avram and Peter.  They concentrated on the difficult task of fixing the heavy plaster board to the ceilings. They completed this, and finished around the windows with plaster board and metal trim.  They applied mesh tape and a first layer of plaster over the seams and screw heads.  

   

    Also in September, a team from Plymouth, led by Margaret Smith, completed the build of a house in one of the Roma villages near Brasov.  The build of a second house is well underway.

Two members of the team helped complete the electrics in the Garcin school workshop.

Progress June 2009

There were six people in the June team: Neil Gregory, Ted & Maureen Hawksey, Colin Skelton, Chris Smart and Steve Walker; Romanians George and Peter helped us all week. The team insulated the walls and clad them with plaster-board.  They connected the electricity supply from the school and installed power and lighting in part of the building.

     

 Progress May 2009

A ‘STEPS Romania’ team clad the outside walls with OSD boards, fitted windows and the external door and made a start on the internal wall frames.

      

 Progress April 2009

The local Romanian company has completed the construction of the frame of the building, ready for the first UK team in May.

 Progress 13th April 2009

The Romanian company is making good progress constructing the timber building.

    

 Progress March 2009

Through the Romanian charity FAST, ‘STEPS’ paid for a local company to dig the foundations, lay the concrete floor and construct the timber building.