Talent’s Trees set aglow in Sofia

Stoyan Kambarev Foundation launched a charitable, environmental and social project in partnership with Sofia Municipality

Braving the cold, hundreds of Sofia residents gathered in the park in front of the National Palace of Culture on December 1 to watch the big Christmas tree of Sofia Municipality light up. At exactly 6 pm, Mayor Yordanka Fandakova lit the lights of the living fir tree that mingled with the fireworks display in the dark sky above Sofia.

After the Christmas tree, the Mayor of Sofia lit the lights of another 40 Talent’s trees, which will remain in front of the National Palace of Culture until January 15, 2020. The celebration ended with a concert of popular performers and children's vocal groups, including fellows of Stoyan Kambarev Foundation.

The foundation, named after the iconic Bulgarian theatre director, who passed away at the age of 45, has partnered with  Sofia Municipality on the Talent’s Trees 2019 project. The initiative is part of the Sofia decorations’ campaign for the holidays and has a charitable, environmental and social focus.

All 40 trees (about 150-200 cm high) are placed in identical large dark brown wicker baskets.  The project’s idea is that companies or individuals can purchase and decorate a Christmas tree in the form of a donation to the Foundation. The baskets can be decorated by the participating companies or by young artists, who are part of the Stoyan Kambarev Foundation. Each company can also write a short festive wish on a small wooden sign with the name and logo of the company.

With funds raised from the Talent’s Trees campaign, the Stoyan Kambarev Foundation will award five one-year scholarships to young talents in 2020, fund participation in workshops and masterclasses, produce several short films and provide material support to 10 large socially disadvantaged families, in which at least one of the children practices art.

Talent’s Forest

The goal of the campaign is to create a new coniferous Forest of Talent. After moving the fir trees from the alley in front of the National Palace of Culture, they will be planted in a specific site in Sofia. The site will be marked with a board with the name of the project and signs with the names of every company that donated a tree. Stoyan Kambarev Foundation dreams of a new Talents’s Forest with 500 trees springing up in ten years time, thanks to the efforts of all involved!

Gifts and foodstuffs can also be donated by businesses and individuals who are not part of the main Talent’s Trees campaign but want to delight gifted children and their families. They can contact the Foundation on its official facebook page or by email at foundationkambarev@gmail.com.