The Horta Sud Foundation, by the side of the Fallas community

14 de febrero 2024  – The Fallas are the most important associative movement in our region, with hundreds of committees working throughout the year to keep this tradition alive. But beyond the celebration, the Fallas represent a fundamental social fabric, made up of thousands of people who collaborate, organize, and build a community around a shared passion.

In fact, in the face of the severe consequences of the DANA storm, many Fallas committees, both affected and unaffected, mobilized from the very first moment, becoming collection and distribution points for aid. Thanks to their dedication and commitment, recovery efforts were able to progress. For all these reasons, the Fallas now need our support more than ever.

In this context, the Horta Sud Foundation has joined the collective SOM reconstruction project. Within this framework, several initiatives will be carried out to highlight the spirit of the festival and the need to join forces for recovery. These include SOM Germanor, a gathering to share experiences and strengthen collaboration among Fallas; SOM Pyrotechnics, a fireworks event to showcase the strength of the Fallas community; and SOM a Falla for Reconstruction, which will culminate in the plantà of a Falla in Paiporta as a symbol of the resilience of the Fallas collective.

This initiative also has the support of the Fallas Regional Board of l’Horta Sud, the Local Fallas Board of Torrent, the Mislata Fallas Association, the Convent of Jerusalem Falla, the Maestro Gozalbo-Conde Altea Falla, the “Pòlvora a la Vespra” Collective, and the Mancomunitat de l’Horta Sud.

As part of the SOM project, the Horta Sud Foundation has launched a financial support campaign, through which each Fallas committee will have its own crowdfunding campaign on our website to raise funds for reconstruction. Additionally, we will allocate €50,000 to be distributed among the Fallas that join this campaign.

We also want to highlight the collaboration with the Germanor festival, organized by Amstel. For every person who attends, Amstel will donate €5 to the Horta Sud Foundation, and with this, we hope to continue gathering resources to help our Fallas, aiming to reach an additional €50,000.

Direct Aid to the Fallas

Since the very beginning, the Horta Sud Foundation has stood by the affected committees. We know which ones are experiencing the greatest difficulties because they have reached out to us, and we have been listening to their needs.

To date, we have delivered €407,984 to 51 Fallas and local boards, and in the coming weeks, an additional €57,376 will be distributed to 17 additional entities, including Fallas from Algemesí. Although Algemesí is not part of l’Horta Sud, we have decided to extend our help to all committees in need, as long as funds are available, because we understand that solidarity knows no borders and that we are all part of this great movement.

In total, adding this to the financial allocations linked to the SOM project and Amstel’s donation, we estimate delivering just over half a million euros to nearly 70 Fallas. This reaffirms our commitment to the associative fabric and to the Fallas as a living expression of the culture and identity of our region.