Bulgaria Ski discussion board

Carole gave me an idea, i don't have many so i acted on it straight away. If you could all email the below to all your email contacts in your list it may help raise the monies for the heating fund, you can titavate it to suit, what have we got to loose?: Pete if this can be at the top to give everyone a chance to read it, it will be great.

As you may know already know I am involved in trying to raise funds for a new heating system in an orphanage in Bulgaria. Up to Christmas these kids, ranging from 8 to 18 only had help from an English lady and her partner who lives nearby the orphanage. The orphanage has a website www.orphanagestoikite-bg.org please read it when you get the time, i am contacting you to try and raise awareness and raise approx. E30,000 euro's for a new heating system, repairs to the windows and put in insulation. The system has broken down after being repaired so many times and these children are freezing. Most of these children have been abused and abandoned by their family , most have deep emotional problems . You cannot imagine what these kids have been through - girls and boys as young as 9 have been in prostituted or sexually abused by their very own families. They stay in the institution until they are 18 and then get turfed out without any money, place to go to or even a bus fare.

Some of you may ask why should we be helping these kids, should the government not be helping. Yes they should, but this will take time. Children's charities are starting to look into things but it could take years. Most of us would not let a dog live in such conditions.

We are trying to think of ways to raise money. We have had lots of help and donations from people on Bulgaria Ski forum and a chap on there, Pete, has been collecting from people and is doing a skiathong in Borovets on 14th March. He will be sking down the mountain in a thong to try and raise more money for these children.

Up to just before Christmas most of these kids did not have any warm clothes or decent footwear but with kind donations managed to kit all the children out in warm clothes. Toiletries, loo roll, washbags, stationery , etc., have also been bought for the children. However, more children are joining each day. I think to date there are 58.

Please have a look at the website www.orphanagestoikite-bg.org and here is a brief description of the orphanage fund . If you can help in any way this would be great every penny goes direst to the fund, if you could spare just a few pound it would help towards the target. If you require further information please contact the Orphanage fund raising line on 0208 1337171

Thank you for reading this .

Amanda, you have left out my important bit:- perhaps some others can do the same

.......I thought I would do a coffee morning towards the end of March, bring and buy, raffle - any suggestions please? I will let you know the exact date soon as I need to check if my little helpers will be around !! The reason I am writing now is to ask you to please save anything you think would be useful, especially any unwanted christmas presents. I will have a rack of second-hand clothes so please do not throw anything out..........

Also, I had to laugh, before Amanda forwarded this to all her contacts she forgot to delete this bit , so they all probably think she is cuckoo (well we all know she is ), inviting all her friends to Bg. for a coffee morning! However, one person sent her £100, so it obviously worked.

Any of you lot live in W.Sussex so you could join us ?