Farewell, dear friends

Ambassador James Pardew’s mission coincided with several great events. In 2003, we marked 100 years since the establishment of the diplomatic relations between Bulgaria and the USA. In 2004, our country joined NATO – on March 29 in Washington the Prime Minister Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha presented the ratification documents to the Secretary of State Colin Powell. The relations between the two countries have never been closer. They are allies in the fight against terrorism, in the mission in Iraq, in the international structures, working for the security and stability in the world.

But outside his official duties the Bulgarians saw Ambassador Pardew as a part of public life. There are just such people – no matter how important a post they hold, their charm and openness make them close. During these years I had the chance to work closely with the Ambassador’s wife Mrs. Kathy Pardew. Mainly in the International Women’s Club Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign, but also in a number of charitable and other initiatives. This charming woman traveled the length and breadth of the country, in towns and villages she not only explained and demonstrated but also organized practical examinations. I have seen her hold firmly a woman’s hand and tell her, “Promise me you will go see a doctor.” She used every event in Bulgaria to work for this cause.

The home of James and Kathy Pardew in Sofia was full of small sculptures and paintings by Bulgarian artists. They were impressed by the Bulgarians’ piety for knowledge, by the talents of our people, and they did everything they could to popularize them.

“I haven’t had so many friends anywhere else,” says Kathy Pardew. I think this is mutual. Once, on their way back from Turkey, at the Bulgarian border the custom-house officer welcomed them saying: “Well, Pardew, coming home, uh?”... Now I am saying: “Farewell, dear friends. We will be waiting for you back home.”

Juliana Tomova
Publisher and Editor-in-Chief