Bulgarian Child, Inc.
Love and
Loaves to Those in Need
7522 Campbell Rd. - St. 113 - 172 - Dallas, TX
June 2003 Trip
Razliv
Razliv is set back from the road behind a
gate in a really lovely setting. We arrived here in the
morning on a sunny day after meeting with the Pravets Obshtina
Secretary Penka Ralcheva and the local Peace Corps Volunteer
Jacob Agran.
Pictured here is Jacob (left) and Zachary
Ridgway who traveled with me as partner and translator.
Bedrooms in this home were spartan but in relatively good
shape. The beds and mattresses were in good shape
compared to other homes that we've visited.
We were told by the mayor of Razliv that the
heating system will be replaced this fall (2003) by the
Obshtina and it surely needs replacing as it consists of
wood/coal stoves in each room as pictured here.
We met with Teodora Bodjinoeva who is the Director of the
school and this is where we found some profound needs. She is
a delightful, pleasant person who obviously has a great love
for the children that she is in charge of.
No picture can possibly do justice to the
effect of this classroom. What you see is what there is - just
broken chairs and a blackboard that would have been tossed out
by the most rudimentary school in the US years ago.
There are no books or notebooks or ANYTHING in evidence
anywhere.
We did find the "library". It consists of a few
well-worn books that are all quite old and outdated.
Razliv has an unemployment rate quoted between 30 and 40%.
These children are being educated with no textbooks, no notebooks,
no pens, paper - absolutely nothing that we take for granted in this
country. Bulgarian Child will work to deliver such things this
fall.
Each classroom has 12 fluorescent light fixtures most of
which did not have any light bulbs in them. While the pictures
shown above appear to be bright that is only because of the miracles
of digital photography and enhancing to show details. There is
a need here for 96 4' lights to completely fill the fixtures in the
school alone.
Another great need here is for Maps. There are simply no
maps or other guides to the world at large. If I remember
correctly we've not seen a good map in any of the schools that we've
visited.
As with almost all of these places there is a constant need for
quality food and clothing of all types. There are no personal
items for these kids but rather everything is "community".
