Usually being accustomed to daily lives characterized by lack of compassion towards those in need, intolerance and nervous strain, now in these days of crisis we have been showing our humane side more often.

After reports of the lack of protective means against Covid-19, teachers and staff at the Raina Knyaginya Professional High School in the Bulgarian city of Haskovo decided to buy fabric and sew as many face masks as possible. They all raised the money, engineers at the school made the sketch and teachers stood behind the sewing machines. The first masks have been donated to the municipal and district headquarters responsible for the fight against the coronavirus, but the school promise not to forget teachers at other schools, children with special needs, as well as mediators working on the field.

"With a personal example we have been able to show our students what empathy and belonging to a community means and this is the most important thing, not how much money we raised," says Rositsa Ivanova, high school principal. According to her, students also want to get involved, but so far this is not possible as they are forbidden to enter the building. However, the head of the school adds they would continue to make masks at the high school, even when the epidemic subsided, as "such protection would always be needed".

Face masks with cheerful designs and pictures of stars, animals and flowers on them are helping brighten up the mood of doctors and police officers. Instead of sewing the usual baby sleep sacks, Desislava Yankova's company produced 3,000 masks for ten days after completely stopping the usual activity. But this has not been the first charitable gesture of the small company. Two years ago, Desislava Yankova started a campaign for safe sleep and donated to 50 maternity wards across the country items that prevent Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.

Using 3D printers a company in Shumen produces free head shields for medical professionals. Its specialists have joined the national initiative, supported so far by businesses and citizens across the country and together managed to make 1,400 out of the requested 1,500 shields. "In the meantime, 800 more units have been requested by hospitals," says Mihael Varbanov, a representative of the Shumen-based company that will also make shields for doctors in the city hospital. "We will not stop printing so that protective equipment can reach more medics," he added.

Across the country, individuals, small and large businesses have shown empathy with donations and gestures of support. But is crisis needed in order to find empathy in us?

"Our society has always been characterized by high morality and compassion," Rositsa Ivanova says. “I remember a boy taking passengers out of a burning bus, or the flood in the village of Biser, when many people came to help. Our society has always been kind and compassionate. And now, when we most need solidarity, we see Bulgarians who donate and help and do not even want to say their names. In fact, the whole society is involved - the doctors on the front line of the fight against the virus, the companies making protective equipment, people staying at home with their children who also help in stopping the spread of the infection. This inspires me to do good things, and this would be a topic that we would be discussing with our students when they return to school. Every day there must be a media report on people doing good deeds, so that everyone knows that they would not be left alone in situations like this."

English: Alexander Markov