
Here is a summary of what happened throughout 2017 and how are we going to remember it:
This year we coordinated and conducted the “Marriage Week” for a sixth consecutive year in Bulgaria. In the beginning of February, the news of a 30 percent rise in the number of marriages and 14 percent decline in divorces since the start of this initiative in 2012 was broadly reflected in the media.
Thousands of people were reached by the video interviews we conducted with people who are both successful in the business and have healthy families. The wonderful stories and photos we received on social media for the competition “Our ‘I DO’” which took place during the “Marriage Week” inspired hundreds of people.

In June we participated in MW national coordinators’ meeting in Prague. There we met representatives of the initiative from more than 20 countries with whom we exchanged ideas, experience, and inspiration.

In 2016 the initiative met the first requirement aimed to collect the minimum number of signatures in seven countries. In Bulgaria over 15 000 people supported the initiative. However, due to incomplete or inaccurately completed personal details, part of the collected over 1 000 000 signatures in the EU were not counted as valid and, hence, the initiative did not meet the second requirement to collect over 1 million signatures of EU citizens. The initiative succeeded spreading awareness of what is happening in Europe among millions of people. The massive support signalled to those governing Europe that the European citizens will continue to protect marriage and the right of a mother and a father the child has.

During the fall we conducted an online campaign, together with others, “NO to Halloween in the Bulgarian school! Yes to the Enlighteners!”. The online petition gathered over 2 700 signatures.
Exposing a number of facts and happenings in many schools lead to policy changes in some areas. The campaign received vast media interest and was supported by pediatrics, psychologists, therapists and pedagogues.

In November we had the opportunity to meet, in Brussels, representatives of other human rights organisations, engaged in the area of defending marriage and family, human dignity and freedom. This meeting helped us understand more about the dangerous consequences of the Istanbul Convention, which further benefitted towards the positive results of our actions so far.

We are grateful that throughout 2017 we succeeded in carrying out our mission together – that is to reach, inform, educate, and activate as many people as we can and to promote and defend human dignity and freedom, marriage and family at national and European level, so we can see healthy families and societies.
In 2017 we expanded our influence and we reach now more than twice as many like-minded citizens. Our desire is to reach twice as many in 2018!
Your giving and support are of great importance to us in our fight against the Istanbul conventions, which will introduce the gender ideology and redefine marriage, which we are trying to prevent right now.
We hope that you are able to help us with a monthly or annual donation so we can continue to positively influence and contribute towards making our country a better place.
Thank you for supporting us in making Bulgaria a better place for all of us and our children!
The Society and Values Association Team