WE ARE THE BULGARIAN SANTA CLAUS
What is “Operation: Teddy Bear”?
“Operation: Teddy Bear” is the largest Christmas campaign for fulfilling children’s dreams of disadvantaged children and youth in Bulgaria. Every year, with a team of 250 volunteers across the country and with the help of thousands of donors from Bulgaria and abroad, we make Christmas possible for young and old in need, by procuring their dream gift before December 25. Each year the campaign opens for donors on November 1st and closes on December 6th.
How can I become Santa Claus to a child or elderly in need?
- On November 1, enter our Platform for donating Christmas gifts – here!
- Choose the region, city and social service in which you want to donate
- Choose a child or adult and their Christmas wish and press the “Make a donation” button
- Register in our system and complete the process by pressing the “Donate” button
- You will receive an email confirming where you signed up as a donor
- You will also have this information in your donor profile on the platform itself
- Buy, wrap, label and send the correct gift before December 6th to the specified address
- Write to us before December 15 if you want to participate in the giveaway
- Tracks for photos m/u 25.12 and 31.01 on the regional facebook pages
Who is this campaign for?
The Christmas campaign each year includes:
- children and youth deprived of parental care
- children and young people with disabilities using day, weekly or residential care
- children and youth at risk
- children and young people from disadvantaged families
- children and youth in conflict with the law
- children and youth in foster care
- adults with mental disabilities in residential care
If you are a director of a social service and would like your service to participate in the 2024 Christmas Campaign, write to us at info@plushenomeche.org by September 1, 2024.
What can and CANNOT I donate during the Christmas campaign?
Campaign only works with NEW gifts. The gifts correspond to specific wishes indicated by the users of each service we work with.
The campaign also publishes “Essential Needs” lists where you can donate essentials to the very services that care for these children and adults. These lists include items such as: white goods, bedding, beauty kits, textbooks, specialized equipment and games for youth with disabilities, clothing, food, and more.
There is no deadline for these – you can submit them at any time, even after the deadline of December 6th. For this column, we accept donations that are second-hand, but preserved and usable.
HOW DOES IT WORK?
