“Stefcho is a boy who also had a dream. He was 18 when he was placed in one of our homes. The social assistance department introduced him to us as “a boy with mental retardation who cannot read or take care of himself.” He used to live in an orphanage where he was often punished. His dream was to possess his own toothbrush. We got it for him. At the age of 18, he could not believe that he didn’t have to share his toothbrush with other people.

Stefcho has lived with us for 9 years now. Today not only does he have his own room and personal belongings, but he also has a full-time job. Stefcho speaks of Cedar as his family. And he dreams big now.”

Stefcho’s story is one of the dreams that Alexandrina Dimitrova, Executive Director of the Cedar Foundation, told in her address to the guests.

While organizing the charity ball, both Alexandrina and ourselves in the central team of the organization also had dreams. We worked tirelessly, talked about it daily… and dreamed about it.

At first glance, our dreams seemed simple – to attract partners, engage a greater number of guests, touch them with the stories we tell, and raise the necessary funds to provide quality care for the children and young people living in our centers. Dreams, simple dreams really, but they required our continued effort, dedication and faith that we would make them come true. 

This year tickets for the event were completely sold out. We attracted great partners who supported our cause free of charge. We engaged all attendees and allowed them to not only dream but make dreams come true.

We couldn’t keep up with counting and writing down all the people who wanted to donate to support the cause. For the first time, we sold out entire books of tickets for our charity raffle. We managed to raise a record amount of 200,000 BGN, which will be invested in the direct care of the children and young people living in our centers, as well as in supporting disabled young people from the community and their families.

And now we know – Cedar’s dreams also come true.

Thank you to the people who supported us! To the guests. To the volunteers. To the hosts – the actors Kate Nichols and Alek Aleksiev, who helped make the evening even more exciting. To the musicians from Faces and Flawless Trio who made sure the atmosphere was good throughout the evening. To the Hyatt Regency Sofia, who provided the room and the event catering pro bono. To the sponsors who contributed to cover all the organizational costs – our gold sponsor CMS, silver sponsor America for Bulgaria Foundation and bronze sponsors Dundee Precious Metals and AG Capital. We would also like to thank the other partners of the event – Pepsi Bulgaria, Pernod Ricard, Georgievi Bros Wine Makery Club, Win Wines, Borovitsa Winery, Concert Complex Bulgaria and Sofia Philharmonic, Dabov Specialty Coffee, Sail with me BG, Sircrow, Gift of the Gods, Chalet Gela, Gyrocopter Bulgaria, Sofia Opera and Ballet, Finimas Residence and Magic Outdoor. As well as the media partners – Bulgarian National Radio, Darik Radio, Capital, Dnevnik, mediapool.bg, Uspelite and B2B media.

Together we change lives! ♥