Hoping to increase support for Children’s Nutrition Fund (CNF) and the charitable work that it does, József Barát, Managing Director at CNF, agreed to share a few words with The CEU Weekly and its readers. The CEU Weekly-contributor Philippe-Edner Marius conducted the following interview: The CEU Weekly: Mr. Barát, what is the mission of the Children’s Nutrition Fund?
József Barát: The mission of Children’s Nutrition Fund is to provide food and education for Eastern-Central-European children who would otherwise have to go without. 40,000 Hungarian children currently starving at weekends could be the first to benefit from this initiative. You have to know: nowadays 4 millions of Hungarians live under the poverty line, one and half millions in extreme poverty. A UNICEF study shows that every second Hungarian child lives in deprivation: they eat less than three times a day, or they have only second-hand clothes, or they do not have toys of their own, no place where they can do their homework. They do not even dream about vacations. How could they? They do not know what a vacation even is. We do not have the needed resources for feeding them all. With our Hungarian sister organization we can hand out food to 2000 children every weekend. But we firmly believe, that one day we will be able to help all the hungry children. And your readers can get us closer to that objective.
TCW: What role do you play at CNF?
JB: I am the Managing Director. I gave up a 40-year long, successful career in journalism, for speaking for those who are never asked for interviews. Most of them have never been to Budapest, maybe not even to the neighboring village. And they could not answer your questions in English. Many cannot even articulate their interests in Hungarian for that matter. People in deep poverty usually are the less educated, and that is why they have no strength to articulate and safeguard their interests. Sometimes they cannot even realize their best interests. As they can be functionally illiterate or semiliterate, they may not know their rights, may not know how to get the needed help. They do not have the access to media, which, for poor Roma for example, would help them fight against prejudices.
TCW: What have been some achievements and/or struggles of CNF?
JB: Ours is the US based international sister organization of a very well known, 20 years old Hungarian charity, the Gyermekétkeztetési Alapítvány (GYEA). The formation of CNF in a way was a desperate step. Since the beginning of the economic crisis every year there are more hungry children in our region and less donations. There happened a kind of miracle last year. Usually it takes 6 months for the American tax authority to grant the tax free /501(c) (3)/ status to an organization. We asked for urgency because the desperate situation of some gypsy Children. We got the status in 6 weeks.
GYEA is a Hungarian nonprofit, founded 20 years ago in Hungary, according to the Hungarian laws. Since 2007, when the economic crisis started, the situation has worsened: much more children are starving but GYEA gets less donations. That gave a push to the foundation of CNF, which is an American based 501(c)(3) organization, established in California in 2012. The two organizations act in cooperation, but we firmly believe that in the future CNF can obtain regional, international functions.
TCW: Who may help CNF and in what way?
JB: You can help. And all your readers can help. Everybody can who wants to make a difference. Of course we need donations. And we need volunteers, for finding donors (individual and corporate) and help in making a good website, and a Facebook page. By the way: we also need help in native language proof-reading. We would appreciate the help of a young American journalist. What do you think?
But we also can help you in a way. We can help you to discover the hidden face of Hungary. During the spring we would like to organize a fundraiser-trip to a Gypsy village Bódvalenke, which is the only European fresco-village. There are murals by the best Gypsy painters in Europe and we are raising funds to build there a play-ground. I think the bus going to Bódvelenke will be packed with really good people. Don’t you want to join them?
TCW: I think it’s a brilliant idea. In fact, some students here at the Central European University are required to complete internships as part of their degree. Perhaps, for those of us interested in work related to social justice, just a couple of questions: How and when can folks apply for internship at CNF? What sort of work will be available for them, say, this summer?
JB: We want to give a "facelift" to our website. We need reports from remote villages, we need writers, editors and native language proof-readers. Of course we also need help in fundraising. The reporters will work in Hungary, but fundraising should be done in other countries, first of all in US.
TCW: Also, so that readers may prepare their calendars, when exactly is the trip in the spring taking place? How to apply/participate in this trip?
JB: The date of the spring trip is the 22nd of March, but it can be changed yet if there is an important reason for that. Anybody interested in the trip, volunteers work or internship can write me. (jozsef.barat@childnfund.org)
TCW: Where may we find more information on the spring trip?
JB: If there is some interest we put information on the website. But it is planned as a special event for the CEU community, and their guests.
TCW: Some weeks ago, and within the past month, I believe CNF organized at CEU several times. How successful was the last activity at CEU?
JB: Some CEU students, have put their names on our volunteer list. We can't wait to work together.
TCW: When is the next activity and where?
JB: The next activity, actually, is the trip.
TCW: We thank you dearly, Jozsef, for sharing your thoughts, experience, and information on CNF opportunities with the CEU community.
Philippe-Edner Marius, Public Policy, USA
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