From 22 to 31 March, the national donation campaign Bulgaria Gives will take place, which promotes and encourages philanthropy. Part of the campaign is also the cause “Give a smile” of the Cedar Foundation. The aim of the organization is to raise 25 thousand leva, which will help to finance the upbringing of 12 children with severe and complex disabilities for a period of 1 year. They are deprived of parental care and live in one of the family-type accommodation centres in the town. The children are living in a family home in Kazanlak.
Choosing to support this particular cause, the actor Alexander Alexiev visited one of the centers of the organization and called on more people to donate to support these children.
“In the Bulgaria Gives campaign I support the Cedar Foundation, who give a smile. I was able to spend time and meet 18 children who have special needs. The children remind us that when we give, we actually receive. What I have seen is that thanks to the Cedar Foundation, they are getting the right care from professionals and are really feeling very comfortable in the family-type homes. I sincerely hope that some of you will also decide to support the cause of the Cedar Foundation, because it makes sense. And because by rallying around these children, we can give them the future they deserve.”
Some of the children’s diagnoses include Spina Bifida, severe forms of cerebral palsy, tuberculosis, limb malformation, very often a combination of several at once. Most of the children are non-verbal and have difficulty moving. They are fragile and often ill. Their daily routine is not like most children’s – they don’t run, jump on a treadmill, kick a ball. But one thing is undeniable – they are some endlessly smiley children. And every day they show the world what it is to overcome yourself, to fight, to be strong, to smile and to infect others with positive energy.
Raising these children requires a complex set of therapies (physical therapy, rehabilitation, sensory therapies, art therapy), the 24-hour presence of social therapists, transportation to get them out the door, and materials and medication that the Cedar Foundation provides on a daily basis. State funding only covers basic needs without regard to specific social and health needs, which are many and varied. The Give a Smile project in the Bulgaria Gives campaign aims to provide the funds for these much needed therapies so that children’s smiles can continue to shine.
Give a smile to the children of Cedar by sending an SMS with the Latin text DMS USMIVKA to 17 777. You can also make a monthly SMS subscription or donate to the organization’s bank account:
IBAN: BG05 UNCR 7000 1520 3427 69, BIC: UNCRBGSF
For Bulgaria donates
The Bulgaria Gives national campaign unites 115 causes from different spheres of public life and everyone can donate for the change they want to make a reality.
From 22 to 31 March, everyone who logs on to bulgariadariava.bg and donates will contribute to making Bulgaria a better place to live. Donating is an act of empathy and a desire to change the world around you together with people who share your values and vision to solve a current social problem.
