A project that connects Czechs and foreigners. Family Next Door on the main CT news broadcast

One Czech family, one Ukrainian. They didn't know each other before, but now they visit each other regularly and have even become friends. They were brought together by this year's twentieth annual Family Next Door – just like dozens of other families across the Czech Republic. One of the best-known integration projects in the country, run by Slovo 21, was even featured in a report on the main news broadcast of Czech Television.

"Family Next Door. A project that brings Czechs and foreigners together over a shared lunch at the end of the year. It gives them a chance to get to know each other better, which helps facilitate the integration of people from abroad into Czech society. This year, these meetings focused on supporting Ukrainian refugees," said CT news anchor Michal Kubal, introducing a report featuring the Erdinger and Romanenko families. Two families who decided to overcome their initial shyness and signed up for our Family Next Door project. Its main purpose is to connect Czech and foreign families in the most natural way possible – by sharing a lunch in one of their homes.

The two families met for the very first time at a set table in November, with the assistance of Slovo 21. They got along so well that they decided to repeat the shared lunch again before Christmas. And this time, they were joined by the cameras of Czech Television. "Sometimes we really miss the feeling that we aren't alone here, that we can call someone, go somewhere together, maybe have a coffee," Alevtyna Romanenková from Ukraine confided to Czech Television. At the first lunch, she served Ukrainian varenyky. At the second pre-Christmas meeting, she prepared mushroom soup in addition to pancakes. "I wanted to cook something that both Ukrainians and Czechs would enjoy," she added.

"Sometimes we really miss the feeling that we aren't alone here, that we can call someone, go somewhere together, maybe have a coffee," Alevtyna Romanenková from Ukraine confided to Czech Television."

And the Czech family certainly enjoyed the meal. They also praise the entire Family Next Door project. "I actually liked the idea that we would be in direct contact with a family for whom we could be a bit of a support system here," Mariana Erdingerová revealed to the television crew. She also admitted that she was initially a bit worried about the first meeting: "We were a little nervous because we didn't know what would happen, who it would be, or if we would be able to communicate." One of the hobbies shared by the Romanenkovs and the Erdingers is travel. According to Czech Television, they are planning a trip together this spring.

Slovo 21 has been using this innovative method to connect Czechs and foreigners for twenty years. More than half of the participating families continue to visit each other. The organizers pair up the registered families based on various criteria. "During the registration process, we try to find out what the families are like, whether they have children, pets, what their hobbies are. Simply what they like, so that we can pair them up as well as possible," explained project coordinator Amra Mešič on Czech Television. Since 2004, nearly 1,800 families – over 5,000 people in total – have met for a shared lunch thanks to Family Next Door.

Family Next Door continues in 2024. If you would like to experience something similar to the Erdingers and the Romanenkovs, don't hesitate to reach out to us…