About Us
Our foundation empowers disadvantaged children via supportive learning opportunities. In 2020, the foundation launched the Tarisznya Tanoda in Litke, Nógrád County. In 2022, we purchased a house to serve as a permanent home for our programs. Our foundation reaches 80-85% of Litke’s households through its programs aimed at local youth. The direct target group of Tanoda’s activities is 6-8 year old youth of Litke, and is powered by volunteers, and a small team of employees, including András Oláh (Bandi), the beloved local community organizer who leads our programs.
Tanoda
In our Tanoda, we organize alternative, project-based and student-centered regular study and community sessions. The Tanoda is led by our local coordinator, András Oláh, and he is supported by both local and external volunteers. The programs include:
- technology course (once a week)
- website editing project (small group session, 1-2 longer sessions per month)
- comic design project (small group session, 1-2 longer sessions per month)
- training / dance programs for girls and boys (several times a week)
- logic games (several times a week)
- joint reading (several times a week)
- arts and crafts (several times a week)
- film club for young and old (weekly)
· drama club, e.g. planning a performance for March 15th (per week)
Meet Bandi
Community Events
In cooperation with the local municipality, the Romany municipality and other organizations, we organize community programs several times a year (e.g. pumpkin carving, Santa Claus celebration, charity concert). In addition, as the coronavirus situation declines, we will also start a film club for the locals.
Csapatunk
András (Bandi) Oláh
Local program coordinator
In the spring of 2015, Ramóna Győrfi, one of the group’s founding members, told me about the Tarisznya for the first time. She had read an article about the community-building initiatives I run in my cherished small village of Litke on one of the news websites. Ramóna was still studying in Italy at the time, but she used Facebook to send me a message. When I first read the message, I didn’t know what to think. What exactly does she want from me? Why Litke? What would this thing look like? Basically, I had a lot of concerns, so we discussed how she might be able to tell me more clearly what it was about in a video call. She said that there would be more young volunteers from different parts of the country who would like to come to Litke and hold a week-long day camp for the children. In the camp, they try to teach the young people here with various fun and creative tasks. After the conversation, I still wasn’t calm, I simply couldn’t imagine how this thing would work here in Litke. That’s why we arranged a personal meeting with Ramóna so that she would visit us when she traveled home. After the personal meeting took place, I calmed down a bit and said let’s go for it. The first camp took place in July, which was a fantastic success, far exceeding all my expectations. It is almost impossible to put into words how much the children enjoyed the camp, but I think the volunteers did as well. It is almost impossible to put into words how much the children enjoyed the camp, but I think the volunteers did as well. Since then, volunteers from the Tarisznya have been coming to Litké several times a year for a summer 1-week and 2-day weekend camp. Unfortunately, last year was canceled due to COVID-19. By now, the team consisting of only enthusiastic volunteers has grown into a foundation, of which I have been working as an employee since September 2020.
Mariann Miller
Development & Strategy
Co-Founder
I am a 31-year-old economist and development policy consultant from Debrecen. I completed my studies at Corvinus University in Budapest (BA) and Stanford University in California (MA). In the past decade, I have worked on Hungarian and African development projects as an employee of numerous NGOs, the UN and the World Bank. I currently live in Washington DC with my husband and our dog, Maple.
For me, the Foundation means a community based on common values. For all members of our team, mutual respect, acceptance, reliability and commitment to bring change to the lives of underprivileged Hungarian children are important. Mutual respect, acceptance, reliability, and commitment to bring improvement to the lives of underprivileged Hungarian children are essential for all members of our team. The people of Litke, my colleagues and our supporters all mean a lot to me and I look forward to working together in the long term on the development of Tarisznya Tanoda.
In March 2020, I joined the Foundation, which at that time was still involved in organizing summer camps for disadvantaged children. It was then that I initiated the creation of a Tanoda that would ensure a permanent presence in Litke. After planning, writing an application, finding a location, collecting donations and furnishing, our team opened Tarisznya Tanoda in September, which has been providing learning, cultural, sports and community opportunities to local children ever since. I am currently involved in the day-to-day operations of the Tanoda in management, strategy creation and program organization tasks. I mainly do my tasks online, and if I can, I also visit Litke in person.
Dorottya Demszky
Fundraising & Administration
Co-Founder
I am an assistant professor at Stanford University in the field of educational data science. I grew up in Budakeszi and moved to the United States after graduation. I graduated from Princeton University with a bachelor’s degree in linguistics, and then I received a doctorate in computational linguistics from Stanford University. My main mission is to promote education with computational linguistics methods, for example through language-based in-service training for teachers and textbook development.
An opportunity to help others with the opportunities I have been given. . Since we founded it, I have devoted almost all of my time to the foundation, in addition to my work and family. Although sometimes the effort seems like a windmill fight, the results and positive feedback from the children and the motivating team always remind me that if it weren’t difficult, our work almost certainly wouldn’t be really important.
As one of the founders of the foundation, I have dealt with almost everything over the past years. Currently, I primarily work as the head of finance and communications. I work to ensure that every coin given to us by others goes to the right place and that we get the most out of it.
Zita Sárossy
Project Manager
I used to work as an English-history teacher, with great dedication to the field. In the course of my work, I paid attention to the development of my students, the development of my school, and the development of my own professional knowledge. I have experience in teaching English to primary and middle school students from grades 1 to 8, teaching history to middle school students, and I have also worked as a class teacher. In accordance with the challenges of the modern age, I obtained my master’s pedagogy program in the field of digitalization in addition to my love of the subject of history. I also participated in the activities of the Rotary and AFS organizations as a host parent of exchange students and as a school coordinator.
I finished my work as a teacher, but I didn’t want to be separated from the world of children. I agree with the Foundation’s goals, I can identify with them, which is why it makes me happy to use my time, dynamism, and the experience I have gained so far to benefit the children supported by the Foundation.
Among my tasks are maintaining contact with supporters and volunteers, coordinating events, and performing certain administrative tasks.
My motto: What is knowledge worth if we can’t pass it on to those who deserve it? (John Cure)
Tamás Gedeon
Grant Manager
I am a 32-year-old theologian, social worker and sociologist with two children living in Debrecen. I completed my studies at the University of Debrecen, the University of Miskolc and the St. Athanasius College of Religious Studies. In the previous years, I was able to work in both the private and public sectors, so I got to know the projects from both directions.
An opportunity to use the knowledge I’ve gained in recent years to assist disadvantaged young people. I am happy to be a member of a team where everyone shares the knowledge they have acquired with great love and wants to use it all for a good cause.
Monitoring applications and writing them is my most important task at the Foundation. I am looking for opportunities and announcements that align with our goals, support the growth of the children attending Tanoda and the strengthen the Foundation.
Ramóna Győrfi
Co-Founder
Volunteers
We currently have ~20 active volunteers in our team, helping us to work with their diverse backgrounds and enthusiasm.
