PENNY Market is the main sponsor of the project, with the amount of 120,000 euros for the construction of the building and over 250 volunteer employees on site until the end of the construction.
The community center that Habitat for Humanity builds in Buftea it will work as an after-school and will serve two schools in the community, at Flamanzeni and Buciumeni - disadvantaged neighborhoods in Buftea, where poverty, conflicts and difficult housing conditions are strongly affecting the development and education of children.
About 250 children out of 350 who study at the two schools, come from disadvantaged families. Most parents do not have a stable job and live from children's allowances, social assistance or day jobs, or go abroad for work.
"We are pleased to continue the long-term partnership that Habitat for Humanity Romania has with PENNY Market through a project that will change the lives of hundreds of pupils from the disadvantaged community in Buftea. The activities they will do in the community center that we build with the support of PENNY Market will help them not to drop out of school, to have better learning outcomes and, finally, to have a chance for a better future, as any child deserves.We are honored to have reliable partners such as PENNY Market, which respects the commitment that the company has undertaken to change the lives of the communities in which it operates, ”says Roberto Patrascoiu, National Director of Habitat for Humanity Romania.
The new community center in Buftea will care for 200 underprivileged children in the community, who are now in danger of dropping out of school. They will receive daily a hot meal, will be helped with the topics, will attend non-formal education courses and will benefit from psychological counseling.
"The partnership between PENNY Market and Habitat for Humanity started in 2016 as a team building, and today we carry out volunteering activities several times a year, these are naturally found in our calendar, being requested and loved by all colleagues.The construction of the community center means access to education for the community in Buftea, it is a project that we care a lot and underpins our CSR strategy. We want the enthusiasm of our volunteers to be passed on to the children who will benefit from this building, "said Irina Butnaru, PENNY Market Romania.
The works on the building of the community center in Buftea started at the end of 2017 and will be completed in December. Up to 250 PENNY Market employees will participate in the construction works by the end of the year.
After the finalization of the construction, the community center activities will be managed by the Hercules Association, which has over 10 years of experience in educational projects with children from vulnerable families.
