THE PROJECT
Vision
The vision of Fara Limite is simple: we want to see kids growing into their potential, advancing life skills and developing character in the context of safe and healthy educational activities.
Kids in the Jiu Valley have very few healthy activities to do during the year outside of school. Most parents are unemployed or live off of pensions and are unable to offer extra educational activities for their kids. Because of this, many kids resort to stealing nad begging for money, or are forced by their parents to do so. A large percentage of youth drop out of school as soon as they become bored of it.
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It is out of these needs that the idea for the climbing gym was born.
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This project creates an environment where kids can learn new skills, set goals, and spend time with positive role models and leaders. Climbing is an activity that develops character, leadership, and trust, all of which are lacking in post-communist communities. This project is also intended to provide job opportunities and leadership training to local Romanians, and will work towards being a sustainable source of income for the other youth programs of the New Horizons Foundation.
History
The Jiu Valley is rich in natural beauty and the potential for outdoor recreation, especially in rock climbing, is high. We started by simply taking groups of kids climbing outdoors, and their enthusiasm and interest spoke for itself. We began to dream of a place where we could give the youth this experience regularly, no matter the season or the weather.
In 2014, we officially became a project of the New Horizons Foundation and we began the planning and development of our climbing gym. In the April of 2015, Fara Limite opened its doors in the city of Vulcan and began welcoming people of all ages to climb. We currently have 30 kids who climb regularly at the gym.
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While our location has changed since filming this video, our vision and hopes for the gym have remained the same.
Membership
While our doors are open to anyone who wishes to climb, our focus rests on the children who have become members of Fara Limite. Membership to the climbing gym consists of a set of agreements that the kids promise to uphold. It also consists of a $20/ month fee, but because the vast majority of kids are unable to afford this price, we have begun a sponsorship program. (To learn more about how to sponsor a climber, visit our Sponsor a Kid page.)
The covenant:
1. They will come and climb at least 2 times per week
2. They will come to the weekly reading hour every Saturday
3. They will stay in school with passing grades
Through this covenant, we hope to teach the youth the importance of commitment, responsibility, and accountability. We have already seen success in keeping kids from dropping out of school.
Happenings
1. Daily operation of the climbing gym.
Youth come at three different ninety-minute shifts depending on their age and climbing ability. They may participate in free climbing time, scheduled trainings, and/or free time reading books in our loft. The gym is
2. Weekly outdoor climbing excursions
In the summer, when the weather cooperates, we take kids and teens to the rock once or twice a week to climb outdoors.
3. Weekly reading hour
Part of the covenant includes attending our weekly reading hour every Saturday. At noon we meet in the gym and read a children’s book out loud to the kids, and then we debrief about the lessons learned from the story.
4. Competitions
We have taken a group of kids and teens to competitions in Cluj and Bucharest, where they are able to see more of their country, meet other young climbers, and forge a stronger connection with the climbing world outside of the Jiu Valley. Many have placed in these competitions. We have also hosted a climbing competition in our gym.
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5. Host children from orphanages
Every Tuesday and Thursday we have certain hours where children from the local orphanages are able to come and climb for free. During these hours, we also recieve paying groups from schools and camps.
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6. Invite professional climbers to visit
We have had the pleasure of welcoming several professional Romanian climbers to work with and encourage the kids at our gym.
7. Summer reading program
In the summer, we participate in the summer reading program with the children’s library in Lupeni, Bilioteca Copiilor din Loc în Loc. This gives the kids even more inspiration and enthusiasm to read books together.
8. Summer climbing camp
In the summer, we take the kids and teens on a three-day climbing camp near Retezat National Park. Watch the following video to see a bit of their experience.
