The summer is joyful for 155 Belgrade kiddies who are splashing the water of the swimming pool full of mineral water in the Red Cross Resort „Milutin Andrejic“ in Mitrovo Polje. It is located at 700m above sea, in the middle of wind rose at equal 22 km distance from Vrnjacka Banja, Aleksandrovac and Brus. 

More than 50 years ago, Milutin Andrejic was the first one to notice health benefits of this place, where continental and mediterranean climate are meeting and pleasantly cooling summer heats. Frogs croaking in winter time intrigued him to look for and discover thermal springs at 140 m below ground. Milutin and his wife dedicated their lives to unknown and poor children to whom they dedicated the resort developed over years. 

The purpose of the resort remain unchanged: to make poor children happier.

Surrounded by a forest, river, sport fields and playground, the resort is ideal place for recharge and reset. The Red Cross volunteers play and learn with children, some are working as pool lifeguards.

This year, like many before, the Red Cross of Belgrade invited citizens to participate in the action “Show them what love means” through offering the possibility of a donation along with the monthly payment for communal services.

The call was answered by 7,303 households and companies. The action was supported by the Secretariat for social protection of the city of Belgrade through financing the program “Aid for marginalised groups of the population on the territory of Belgrade”. 3,123,212 dinars were collected, which were enough to finance the recuperation of two groups of children of disadvantaged Belgrade families.

The stays are a week long for each group, though the kids perceive it as shorter. When night settles on the hills and lulls the meadows to sleep, the party begins in the resort. Costume parties, hairdressing, beauty pageants and so on. All the way through ten o`clock, when music lulls them to sleep. And then only the restless river remains awake, flowing into the next summer day.

How big of a difference this stay will make in the children`s lives is not known, but all hope that these happier summer days will make their miserable nights warmer. And so it goes until the next visit. The children have now made new friends, some have fallen in love, and how long this will last - is up to time to determine.