Orientácie
STVR · 2026 · 6 min
Orientácie
A religious magazine of Slovak Television and Radio.
Orientácie
A religious magazine of Slovak Television and Radio.
These are not our stories. They were published by newspapers, television and the people themselves; we only point to them.
He comes from Klenovec. He studied medicine in Košice and has his specialist qualification from Charles University. From secondary school he was supported by the Divé maky scholarship programme. “The fact that a Roma person manages to get out of the settlement, builds a solid career, makes a living and is content in life may in fact be a greater achievement than my becoming a doctor.”
Postoj, 28. 6. 2026He was born in the Roma settlement on Budulovská Street. Outside it he built a house with a garden by his own work, and he lives in it with his family. He works in the local community centre. Dobré noviny writes about him that “he changed his life from the ground up and today is an inspiration to many locals”.
Dobré noviny, August 2026The traveller Denis Kovács in the Markíza studio: “For me, Luník was a model example of how one can live when someone there cares about it.” The historian Klara Žuk from SAV, the Slovak Academy of Sciences, who has been going there since 2017: “In almost ten years a great deal has changed in Luník IX.”
Markíza, 9. 10. 2026 Denník N, June 2026He tells it himself: in 1999 he went to Switzerland as a street musician, a widower with five children. He came back to serve the Roma in Sabinov. “We bought a family house and made a prayer room for 60–70 people.” In 2019 the congregation's social centre cooked every week for 400 of the poorest.
Apoštolská cirkev, 2019She comes from a Roma settlement and was the first woman from it to finish university. She worked in the community centre in her home settlement and helped to create a theatre there. “Although I come from a Roma settlement, I am very proud that I have achieved something.”
Nový Čas, 6. 8. 2019With the help of his closest family he built a wooden house himself; the village provided the material for the shell of the building and he is paying it back. Before that the family lived in one room at his in-laws'. “Our situation has improved a lot. I am glad my children can grow up in a better environment.”
SME“I grew up and spent most of my life in the Roma settlement in Levoča, where over two thousand Roma live.” He trained at a vocational school and passed his school-leaving exam, did social work in the Roma settlement in Rudňany, and kept studying until he earned a PhD.
SMEHe studied horticulture and landscape engineering, worked abroad for several years and came back to his home village. The Rác family is the only Roma family in Bolešov; he has been the mayor there for years.
STVR, Rádio Regina ZápadThey visit families, remind them about vaccinations and children's check-ups, and speak with people in Romani. Of 335 assistants, two thirds come straight from the excluded communities. Radko Horváth from Nálepkovo: “They trust me because I have worked there for longer.”
Zdravotnícky denník, November 2025Churches, villages and organizations that have worked among the Roma for years, arranged by the child's age. →
A study by the Slovak Academy of Sciences (SAV) on churches among the Roma, research on the Omama programme and other analyses. →
Letters and annual reports from the present-day krm.sk, just as they were published.
Short updates keep appearing on the mission's Telegram and Instagram and on the Facebook page of the parish in Markovce; videos are on YouTube. Telegram → Instagram → Facebook → YouTube →
Who we are, figures with sources, full-resolution photos and a contact for Fr. Martin.
martin.halik@krm.sk · +421 951 230 015