Dobre Dobrev

Dobri Dimitrov Dobrev (, ; 20 July 1914 – 13 February 2018), better known as Grandpa Dobri, Elder Dobri or The Saint of Bailovo, was a Bulgarian ascetic who walked over each day to sit or stand in front of the Cathedral of Alexander Nevsky in Sofia to collect money for charitable causes. Dobrev donated all the money he collected to charities, orphanages, churches, and monasteries. He turned 100 in July 2014. In Bulgarian, his name translates as "good" or "kind".

Early life Dobrev was born on 20 July 1914 in the village of Bailovo. His father, Dimitar, died in World War I and his mother, Katerina, had to raise their children by herself. It is this new direction in life and the example he gave with his asceticism that led many to call him The Saint of Bailovo.

Over the course of his lifetime, Dobrev donated over 80,000 Bulgarian lev (40,900 euro) to churches, monasteries and other noble deeds. Among his biggest donations are: 10,000 Bulgarian lev (5,110 €) to the Saints Cyril and Methodius parish church in his native Bailovo 25,000 Bulgarian lev (12,780 €) for restoration of the Eleshnishki Monastery Mother Mary located to the east of Sofia, and the local church in the village of Gorno Kamartsi.

Personal life and death Dobrev married around 1940, as Bulgaria joined World War II. In one of the bombings of Sofia, a bomb fell near him and he lost almost all his hearing.