An event to celebrate the 7th birthday of the Complex brought together invited guests, working partners and friends in Battenberg Hall of the Regional History Museum.
The Battenburg Hall is one of our favourite venues and we are grateful for the generosity and support of the director and staff of the museum over the years.
The complex was opened in October, 2005 and, in recognition of seven years of serving the community, Dr. Andrian Raykov – the deputy governor of Ruse – read a congratulatory letter from the governor Stefko Burdzhiev and presented our operational director, Milena Vlahova, with a beautiful bouquet. He also wished the entire team to continue providing expert assistance to disadvantaged people and to continue performing with the same enthusiasm and commitment.
We also received a congratulatory letter from Plamen Stoilov, the Mayor of Ruse, who expressed his wish for our future work to reflect the success of past years and thanked us for our efforts on behalf of the children and families in the municipality.
Our special guest was Georgi Simeonov, the first programme manager who helped shape the complex.
Guests representing the British social work community – Diana Weitz and Fran Havard – congratulated the staff and our guests and presented a gift – CDs with children’s music from around the world.
David Bisset surprised everyone with an improvised and heartfelt presentation about the passion that leads people in their lives and work, using the example of the iconic figure of Steve Jobs. The people from the team of the Complex were awarded with a personalized Steve Jobs badges in recognition of their inspired contribution to our work which is often difficult and frequently unrecognized but also personally rewarding.
To end the day, the audience separated into groups and created seven giant jigsaw puzzles called Seven Years of the Complex for Social Services – Ruse. The puzzles were full of visual metaphors and affectionate jokes reflecting the impressions of our ‘fan club’.
We also received many top marks for performance in a hand-made student notebook compiled by our guests.
