Fundacja Pomocy Wzajemnej Barka

Barka Foundation for Mutual Help was established as a response to increasing social problems during transformation years. Barbara and Tomasz Sadowski wanted to create conditions in which the “forgotten and unwanted” could have a chance for personal growth and social development. This mission influenced the creation of an alternative system of support, which gathers people from the weakest groups, giving them possibilities to rebuild their lives, upgrade vocational skills and find their way in the new socioeconomic reality. In 1989, these two psychologists set up the first Barka community, using the derelict school building in Wladyslawowo (in the West of Poznan). This first community gave a home for 25 “life wrecked”” individuals, who were living together with the Sadowski’s family. Wladyslawowo became the spring-board for the continuing mutual-help movement, engaging not only the people in need but also informal groups and non-governmental organizations in Poland and abroad.