In the period July 20 – August 5 Sofia citizens and guests of the capital will be able to enjoy the endless imagination and color sensitivity of the kids’ drawings, displayed at the Gifted Sofia Gallery. Over the past 12 years the little artists have created their art for different initiatives of the I CAN TOO international charity foundation for support of children with special needs. The “quiet auction” money will go for a noble cause.

“I CAN TOO helps children with special needs and their families,” says representative of the foundation Dessislava Eneva. “We have been working for 12 years now and the organization was established by Neli Radeva. Thanks to her efforts we have turned into perhaps one of the most recognizable organizations in Bulgaria. All our activities aim at the popularization of the challenges faced by children with special needs and their families – and we also try to improve their quality of life. We raise funds and create initiatives all the year round, starting the talk on the delicate subject in a positive manner.”

The foundation works with children from different schools and the Palace of Children in Sofia. There are over 100 drawings displayed at the current exhibition.

“We have always tried to encourage the children to express themselves. One can see here almost all the drawings that we have collected through the years, since in our opinion everything created by the children is magnificent, no matter their subject. Those reveal the view on life they have and the way a child thinks – and this is always beautiful. Most often children tend to draw landscapes, nature, flowers – something colorful. In my opinion these are the things that each kid associates with beauty, love, freedom – the things we all long for,” Dessislava Eneva says.

So, where are the funds raised going to?

“At present we have focused our efforts on our Mobile Therapist program,” Dessislava further says. “It supports the Center for Hope therapeutic center in Sofia. The families do need a specialized vehicle which can take the children from their homes to this center, in order for the kids to begin their rehabilitation. The other thing that we really need is one rehab expert for actual visits to the families’ homes, in order for the children to receive rehabilitation on a daily basis, no matter their actual condition.”

Over 50 kids with serious diagnoses are taken care of at the center for children with special needs. The implementation of the program needs an annual budget to the tune of EUR 56,000. Part of this funding will come through donations and anyone can get involved into the fundraising of the other part – by buying a picture, drawn by children in support of their coevals with special needs.

English version: Zhivko Stanchev