Cesta Von

The mission of Cesta von (Way Out) is to help people stuck in poverty get back on their feet, get a job and live with dignity. In Slovakia, extreme generational poverty is mainly associated with marginalized communities living in settlements. Every year, around children are born into these communities, deprived of their future by our society. Without help, parents of these children are not able to prepare them for a successful schooling and fulfilling future. Therefore, our program Omama is focused on development and targeted stimulation of these children at a critical early age between 0 and 6 years, when their brain undergoes most of growth. We do this from within the community, through employed women – “Omamas” – who come from these settlements. Our priority is that Omamas empower the parents of these children to shield them from negative impacts of poverty and toxic stress that is most harmful for a healthy child brain development.