By Nazmie Mustafa, YES 2015-2016, Bulgaria, hosted by YFU in Whitehall, Michigan

What do you do on a normal Saturday? Let me tell you what 26 enthusiasts of all ages did on September 29. On this date, after two months of planning and preparation, I organized a 5K Color Run in Zaimov Park, one of the main parks in Sofia, in cooperation with the Bilitis Foundation, which works to protect and advocate for the rights of the LGBTQA+ community in Bulgaria. The goal of the event was to promote respect for diversity and raise awareness about the LGBTQA+ community while raising money to support future such events.

The event got the attention of people passing by as soon as we began warming up. The moment we announced the start of the fun run, a lot of citizens of the park came to watch, cheer, and take pictures, which showed how interested they were. As the run continued, we could see little children joining in and smiling as we painted the runners in red, orange, yellow, green, and blue--all the colors of the rainbow. It was a fun activity that gathered people with different viewpoints. In the end, we managed to raise approximately 90 USD, and my co-organizers and I were very happy and satisfied with how the event turned out.