Jerzy Owsiak
Commuters in Warsaw were treated to a rare sight this week when they were greeted by people collecting for WOŚP’s charity event without any trousers. According to Fakt, travellers getting on and off the city’s metro were approached by hoards of trouser-less youths bearing collection boxes as part of WOŚP’s annual ‘No Pants Subway Ride’ campaign. As an added boost, the collectors were joined by Jacek Januszko, former participant on “You Can Dance”.
Wielka Orkiestra Świątecznej Pomocy (The Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity) is one of the biggest, non-governmental, non-profit, charity organizations in Poland. The GOCC Foundation has American Heart Association Certification for providing courses in CPR and ECC, and use of high technology for medical lifesaving.
It was founded in 1993 by Jerzy Owsiak, Lidia Niedźwiedzka-Owsiak, Bohdan Maruszewski, and Piotr Burczyński. The main objective, at that time, was “Protecting Health and Saving Children’s Lives by Providing Medical Equipment to Public Hospitals” (as stated in the deed of foundation). During the first Finale (for the benefit of pediatric cardio-surgery) in the same year, the Foundation collected a total of USD 1,535,440.68. Every year, millions of Poles donate their money to the Foundation and, between 1993 and 2005, they collected more than $60 million for public hospitals in Poland.
Apart from The Grand Finale, the Foundation also organizes one of the biggest rock concerts in Poland, Woodstock Festival Poland, and it started the Peace Patrol, a group of young volunteers trained in first aid by the GOCC, the Polish Red Cross and the Szadowo town police. In 2010, the Charity was paid to be ‘sponsor’ of Ruch Chorzów, one of Poland’s top football teams.
The aim of their work is to save the lives of sick people and especially sick children as well as to improve their medical condition. Also, The Foundation’s active involvement in health care enables us to support health promotion and propagate medical prevention.
They are furthering our aims by organizing the Grand Finale fundraising events, buying medical equipment for hospitals all over Poland and by carrying out five nation-wide medical programs and an educational one.
Do następnego razu… (Till next time…)
