 | |
| Founded | 2 March 1993 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Jerzy Owsiak |
| Legal status | Non-profit organization/charity organization |
| Purpose | Raising funds for the healthcare system in Poland |
| Headquarters | Warsaw, Poland |
| Website | en |
The Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity (GOCC, Polish Wielka Orkiestra Świątecznej Pomocy, WOŚP) is the biggest, non-governmental, non-profit, charity organization in Poland raising money for pediatric and elderly care.[1][2] The GOCC Foundation holds American Heart Association certification to provide courses in CPR and AED, and for the use of high technology for medical lifesaving. The GOCC aims to support health care in Poland by purchase of state of the art medical equipment for Polish hospitals and clinics and by establishing and running six medical programmes and one educational programme. The foundation supports pediatric and geriatric wards, furnishing them in both complex medical devices such as MRI scanners, and providing long-term care units with anti-bedsore mattresses and beds.[3]
Since April 2016 the GOCC ranks on the top of the list as the most trusted public entity according to Brand Asset Valuator and is the second strongest brand in Poland in the ranking compiled by Millward Brown and Young & Rubicam agency.[4] The GOCC foundation organizes the biggest open-air free entry music festival in Europe – Pol'and'Rock Festival.[5] The GOCC foundation offers first aid and team building courses, which are open to all adult members of public. The volunteers who have completed the training become the members of Peace Patrol, whose duties involve stewarding at the festival field, assisting and informing festival goers.
The charity has been the subject of smear campaigns by then-ruling Law and Justice party, however, its fundraising tripled from 2015 to 2019. According to a survey by Gazeta Wyborcza it is the most-trusted Polish organization.[6][7]
- ^ "Christmas orchestra charity drive raising millions for healthcare". Retrieved 2016-09-02.
- ^ "XXII Finale of the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity". london.mfa.gov.pl. Retrieved 2016-09-05.
- ^ "Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity 2016 Wroclaw | www.wroclaw.pl". Retrieved 2016-09-05.
- ^ "Ptasie Mleczko, WOŚP i złoty najsilniejszymi markami w Polsce, TVN najwyżej z mediów". April 2016. Retrieved 2016-09-05.
- ^ "Woodstock Festival (Przystanek Woodstock)". www.poland.travel. Retrieved 2016-09-02.
- ^ Bill, Stanley (16 September 2020). "Counter-Elite Populism and Civil Society in Poland: PiS's Strategies of Elite Replacement". East European Politics and Societies. 36: 118–140. doi:10.1177/0888325420950800.
- ^ Sieradzka, Monika (15 January 2019). "Why Poland's government is up in arms about a children's charity". Deutsche Welle. Retrieved 29 October 2020.