Bulgarian Sports Federation for Children Deprived of Parental Care works actively to organize the sports life of the children in Bulgarian residential care institutions. The Federation is a non governmental organization, established to work for the good of society and children that are either orphans or their parents are unable to look after them. It is the only sports organization of the kind to be licensed by the State Agency for Children Protection, which is a Social Ministry Department, as organization doing social service for children.
Bulgarian Sports Federation for Children Deprived of Parental Care works with different kinds of sports but mainly with football, basketball, light athletics, table tennis and badminton. The main goal of the Federation is to support the development of the individual abilities and social integration of the children at risk and to develop, support, popularize and create sports facilities and such for physical activities.
Because sport is the social phenomenon, which can easily unite individuals with different background, giving them a chance to succeed in a field where every individual is of importance. On the other hand it teaches them to be competitive as well as cooperative, ready for team work. Thus many useful characteristics are developed and the children are integrated to real life out of the institution. Some of them, the most capable ones, are able to take one more chance – to become professional sportsmen.
LET’S GIVE EVERY CHILD A CHANCE
TO FEEL THE JOY OF VICTORY!
All the activities of the Bulgarian Sports Federation for Children Deprived of Parental Care are subject to the goal to support the realization, de-institutionalization and social integration of the children at risk.
Let’s give our contribution to their better future!
We work aiming to achieve:
- Assistance the realization of the personal abilities and social integration of the physically healthy children and teenagers deprived of parental care;
- Creation of initiatives and implementation of projects with activities directed to social integration of those children;
- Creation of permanent interest in sport and physical activities, as well as making facilities suitable for training and competitions;
- Building and maintaining good facilities for recreation and sport in vacations;
- Creations of strategy for transformation of the institutions for children (deinstitutionalization) and the development of the sports life;
- Giving the children from the residential care institutions the chance to practice sport and to make career (professional orientation);
- Facilitation the efforts of our society to integrate children with different ethnic and social background;
- Provoking the awareness of the society of the problems of the children deprived of parental care.
Our team and regional structure
Chairman of honor of Bulgarian Sports Federation for Children Deprived of Parental Care is Mrs. Stefka Kostadinova, also Chairman of Bulgarian Olympic Committee and high jump world champion.
Chairman of the Board of Directors is Mr. Anatoly Iliev, who has worked many years for Bulgarian sports and physical culture.
Members of the Board of Directors are:
Anatoly Iliev
Lilyana Tomova
Irena Georgieva
Robert Gergov
Gergana Stefanova.
In order to involve children from the residential care institution into sports life the Federation established sports clubs in close proximity to the institutions. There are sports clubs in the bigger Bulgarian towns named ‘Big Heart Sports Clubs’. They unite the efforts of the local society and the Federation and its specialists to organize the sports life of the children from the institutions. With the cooperation of the clubs, since 2002 we organize Christmas Tournaments for children from the institution in five sports – football, basketball, light athletics, table tennis and badminton, and since 2005 – Easter Tournaments as well. By now there are Big Heart Sports Clubs in: Sofia – region, Plovdiv, Gabrovo, Ruse, Shoumen, Bourgas, Pleven, Sliven, Haskovo and Stara Zagora. The clubs in Varna and Nesebar are in the process of establishment but notwithstanding this they already function actively.
