The first street in the world that bears the name of a donor who saved four human lives can be found in Bulgaria’s coastal city Varna. The place reminds us of the last, extremely valuable gift that a person can make in their earthly path.
The street is called "Georgi Nikolov" and it is in the Asparuhovo district of Varna. The renaming of the existing street with the name of a donor is an initiative of citizens and the creators of "The Last Gift of Man" project, which aims to raise awareness of organ donation in Bulgaria.
Life after the end
Georgi Nikolov was a young man from Varna, who on September 20, 2015, remained forever at the age of 21, yet he made it possible that 4 other lives would continue by becoming a donor. A university student abroad, with a sharp mind and a bright future, Georgi had no serious health problems and there was no way of knowing that an insidious brain aneurysm in his head was about to burst and end his life. Aneurysms have no explainable medical cause or symptoms, and in George's case it was no more than bad chance. However, he gave four people a chance for life, which made him a hero, and thus inspired the innovative idea of naming a street after him.
Organ donation in Bulgaria
There are only 13 realized donor situations in Bulgaria in 2022, and the list of persons waiting for donation has nearly 1,000, which places Bulgaria in the queue in the European Union in terms of the number of transplants. People familiar with the matter estimate that if current rates continue, it will take more than 20 years to transplant all those waiting to date.
The story of Georgi Nikolov and of organ donation in Bulgaria is told in the multimedia project "The Last Gift of Man". In order for it to be implemented, its authors Alexander Nikolov and Dimitar Panayotov held over 100 meetings with doctors, patients and families of donors in more than 15 towns. They filmed in 8 hospitals, attended three transplants and witnessed one donor situation.
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Compiled by Elena Karkalanova
Translated and published by Rositsa Petkova
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