To give of your time to a person in need, to share your food or listen to what a lonely, elderly person has to say. To exhibit such virtues in this hard world takes nobleness of character and kindness. It may seem that benefaction and compassion are gone from the world we live in, fortunately, charity organizations and initiatives have been springing up to remind us to never forget our neighbor or the people who need our empathy and our help.

One such charity organization is the association founded by Blagovest Belchev which helps the visually impaired, the disabled, children without parental care, lonely elderly people to make their lives easier.

One of its popular initiatives which is into its fourth year is “Take a blind person for a walk in the park”. Belchev says that the idea came to him “as a result of his weekly visits to a nursing home for the blind in Sofia. They live close to Southern Park, but never get to visit it because of their impairment. This is what gave me the idea to organize volunteers who could take them on walks in the park.”

Blagovest Belchev explains that “usually we have a lot of volunteers coming to join the organization’s mission but that there are times when there aren’t enough.” It is mostly young people aged 20 to 30 that show compassion and an interest in the initiative. There are some volunteers who are older, but they are far fewer. What kind of people come to take the visually impaired out for a walk and what motivates them to do so?

“A sense of empathy and a wish to help a person in need,” says Blagovest Belchev. “Of course, volunteers possess a set of qualities that are exceptional, but most importantly, they are compassionate, they have empathy and the desire to give something of themselves to make another person happy.”

Blagovest Belchev’s organization is engaged in different kinds of charity work. Kind-heartedness, generosity, compassion is what underpins the work and the missions its members are committed to. It sometimes takes good partners and a sense of responsibility to make the plans work.

What kind of difficulties do they encounter in their work? Blagovest Belchev:

“Our initiatives are connected with regulatory procedures for the activity in question and we have to observe certain legal frameworks. Many of the people we endeavour to help live in social homes which are municipally-owned and we have to respect the procedures and the in-house rules. I’d say that in most cases we have the support and cooperation of the directors for organizing and pursuing our missions.”

When the work you do every day is based on human kindness and compassion, this reveals to what an extent Bulgarians are ready to engage in charity work:

“I think they are,” says Blagovest Belchev. “I have noticed in the past 4-5 years that there are many people who want to join in a given initiative. Unfortunately, that is sporadic and in most cases, a one-time effort. People are busy with many things to do in the material world that surrounds us. Time is precious to us all. We are grateful to the people who have joined our initiatives. But I would like to add that it would be a good thing to make efforts to create traditions for helping other people. Of course, taking part in one mission is a great help to the needy. Yet it would be so much better if this help was not a one-off thing. Because the disadvantaged need help all the time, not just on one day of the year.”

So, should children be brought up in a spirit of giving, of compassion from an early age?

“Character formation is an ongoing process. And it is never too late. But, of course, it is best to start involving children in missionary initiatives such as this from an early age. This is a way to mould character traits that will be reinforced with the passing of the years to become a way of life. One thing that is typical of our society is that there are many initiatives taking place, but they are sporadic. It would be so much better to instill in children such traits from an early age. And the only way to do this is not by words or by giving advice, but by deed, by offering a role model. If we involve our own children and take part in initiatives such as this with them, that would benefit the individual as well as society.”

English version: Milena Daynova