On October 31, 2022 For Our Children Foundation held its biggest charity event – Evening of the Virtues at Sofia Event Center. For the 13th time, the evening brought together over 250 guests from the diplomatic, cultural and business circles, united around the common cause of supporting early childhood development.

The patron of the event was H.E. Dr. Rob Dixon, British Ambassador to Bulgaria.

“I am glad that we have a long tradition of cooperation between For Our Children Foundation and the British Embassy in Bulgaria. I speak for myself, as well as my predecessors, when I say that seeing the organization grow and achieve its long-term plans is extremely rewarding,” H.E. Dr. Rob Dixon said in his remarks, adding:

“I know the work of the Foundation both inspires and motivates all of you tonight – promoting the importance of every child living in a safe and loving family environment is a clear sign of our shared humanity.”

The program of the event was able to show the guests the real fate of one of the children supported by the Foundation in the past year. Videos shot especially for the event were screened, telling a story of abandonment, the struggle to preserve a child’s life and the victory in the name of a happy childhood.

The program included performances by Bulgarian artists who support the cause of the Foundation. Hosts for the event were actress Vesela Babinova and actor Vladimir Zombori, who led the evening with grace and compassion. Michaela Fileva, Hassan and Ibrahim Ignatov, Valeria Stoyanova, Junior Band and the young artists from XS Artists Music School took the stage and sent a strong messages to the audience through their creativity and words expressing their position that all efforts to preserve the childhood are worth it.

The peak of the evening was the charity auction hosted by Igor Markovski. During the auction, guests donated to the cause, bidding on valuable items and experiences provided by supporters of the Foundation, including Grigor Dimitrov and the embassies in Bulgaria of the United Kingdom, Qatar, Germany, Canada, South Africa, the Kingdom of Morocco, India, Indonesia, Kuwait, Turkey and others.

“2022 was a unique year in the 30-year life of For Our Children Foundation. As someone who has lived through 24 of those 30 years, I can safely say it was worth it. It was worth every crisis, every uncertainty and every obstacle, every setback, every despair. It was also worth every victory, every smile, every child saved, every family that came to us unsure and scared and walked away hopeful”, said Mrs. Ivanka Shalapatova, Executive Director of For Our Children Foundation.

“Childhood is too short to miss opportunities for children to be healthy, loved and happy. Bulgarian society forgets that Bulgaria’s most precious capital is its children and that is why we are paying too high of a price – both social and demographic”, she added.

For the sake of children’s happiness and hope during the Evening of Virtues “Guardians of Childhood” were raised more than 230 000 BGN.

100% of all funds raised during the event will be invested in the programs of the Foundation in order to support over 2 500 children and families in 2023.

For Our Children Foundation would like to thank the creative benefactors of the event Dimitar Kotsev-Shosho, Ivan Angelov and all the supporters, partners and friends without whom the Evening of the Virtues would not have been possible. 

Evening of the Virtues was organized with the support of the general sponsor Dundee Precious Metals Chelopech, the hosts from Sofia Event Center,  the general partners Special Events Group and Generali, the gold sponsors EOS Group, Progress and Interlogistics Holding Limited Sofia, silver sponsors Reynaers Aluminium Bulgaria, Ipsos and Compass Invest and the partners The Smarts, Red Devil Catering, J Point, Diana’s Angels, Arlete, Metro Cash & Carry, H&M, Turkish Airlines and XS Artist. Media partners of the event were Bulgarian National Television, Bulgarian National Radio, Bulgarian News Agency, Nova Broadcasting Group, Bulgaria ON AIR and Investor Media Group.