The Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity
Stay healthy in a healthy world!
ABOUT US
Who are we?
Our objective is to support public healthcare in Poland. We achieve this goal by purchasing state-of-the-art equipment for Polish hospitals and clinics. We have also initiated and helped to run eight nationwide medical programmes, which aim to transform medicine in the country systematically. The purpose of our educational programme is to introduce CPR lessons to primary schools nationwide. We work to raise awareness and improve health prevention in the entire country. Our Foundation's work is focused on supporting children's medicine and enhancing the level of care offered to senior patients in geriatric and long-term care units.
The Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity Foundation has been officially registered in Warsaw in March 1993. The founders are Jerzy Owsiak, Lidia Niedźwiedzka-Owsiak, Bohdan Maruszewski, Piotr Burczyński, Paweł Januszewicz, Walter Chełstowski, and Beata Bethke. The first Grand Finale fundraiser was held in January 1993 - at first, it was meant to be a one-off happening to raise money for the cardiac surgery ward at the Children's Memorial Hospital in Warsaw. The spectacular success of the first effort, which enabled the foundation to divide the money between all cardiology units treating children in Poland, inspired the establishment of the GOCC Foundation. The foundation has been established by Jerzy Owsiak, Lidia Niedźwiedzka-Owsiak, Bohdan Maruszewski, Piotr Burczyński, Paweł Januszewicz, Walter Chełstowski, and Beata Bethke. Jurek Owsiak used this complicated name for the first time in 1991. What a mouthful! Try saying it 3 times in a row!
Jurek Owsiak
Born 6 October 1953 in Gdańsk, Poland. In 1993, Owsiak founded the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity, along with Lidia Niedźwiedzka-Owsiak and Bohdan Maruszewski, which is now one of the largest, non-government, non-profit charities in Poland...
Medical Equipment
The money raised at the annual fundraiser goes towards the purchase of medical equipment for public hospitals in Poland and to finance medical and educational programmes. Each year we carefully consider which branch of medicine we are going to support, but we always focus our activities on children's medicine...
Volunteers
Volunteers collect money in the locality of their Collection Centres, and only outdoors, in the streets, market places, other open, public areas. Provided that the local Collection Centre has the permission from the management, the volunteers can also collect funds on shop premises, such as shopping centres. We ask you not to go door-to-door and bother people at their homes...
Diabetes Run
The idea behind our charitable run is to raise money to buy personal insulin pumps for pregnant women with diabetes. To date, we purchased and donated 1 776 personal insulin pumps. This sporting event has a long-running tradition — for 16 years, runners came together to show their support to women battling diabetes...
Concerts & Events
The finale of the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity is not only a one-day collection on the streets of cities, but also dozens of accompanying events - concerts, sports attractions, activities for children, fairs - organized by Teams operating around the world. Check what events the Teams are planning in your area!
Auctions
During the Grand Finale, it is also possible to participate in auctions on the Allegro website, where not only the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity auctions items, but also any person who wants to support the campaign. For foreigners, it is possible to set up an eCollection Box...
31st FINALE
CONTACT US
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