Heda Lambertová is the coordinator and head of the DOFE and Dana Vítová is the head of the DOFE at OA, SOŠ and JŠ Hradec Králové. We interviewed them to find out what DOFE means to them and how they manage to implement it at their school and in the coronavirus era.
Why do you support DOFE and why do you think it is beneficial for young people?
Heda: I think it motivates our students to try new things and spend time doing activities they enjoy. At the same time, they are also trying new things, having adventures, having fun, making new friends.
Dana: We are very happy that we can help them in their motivation to achieve their goals. We are very happy about it and we are also very inspired.
Heda: And we enjoy it too.
That's what we like to hear. And how did the students cope with completing activities during the Covid-19 pandemic?
Dana: They had a very hard time. Sometimes they needed advice, because they had to change their activities a little bit. They went from collective activities to individual activities, they started running, cooking at home. That must have always made the family very happy.
Heda: We were happy too, because we could taste new things before the lockdown. For example, sushi and different desserts.
Dana: Now she has started making Christmas cards for abandoned seniors.
Heda: That was in the context of volunteering. There was also a lot of tutoring, for example, of foreigners, tutoring children who needed support during the lockdown to go to school.
Dana: They transitioned seamlessly to the online environment and managed to execute even during lockdown. Great job.
What activity surprised you the most?
Dana: I was most surprised by the sports activity - poledance. I didn't know it existed as a sport until one of the participants chose it. Then I was also surprised by the cooking of one of our participants, a boy who learned to perfectly master Italian desserts, sushi and Czech sauces.
Heda: Of the foreign languages, I was surprised by Korean, which one boy chose, or sign language. We even had Polish.
Sounds interesting. And what are you looking forward to in the DOFE next year?
Dana: Heda is definitely most looking forward to the expeditions. We really enjoyed this year's expeditions, we caught them at the last minute. I'm looking forward to helping the participants complete their expedition.
Heda: I'm looking forward to reaching out to new people, once they go back to school we'll be able to reach them better.
What would you say to the dofaks in conclusion?
Heda: Thank you for taking the time to develop and help others.
Dana: Thank you for their ingenuity and patience even in this difficult time.
