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Nicknamed "Teddy Bear Mama", Valeria Schmidt
looks after her precious collection of bears, now packed up in
plastic bags for their unusually long winter sleep as Hungary
remains in partial lockdown due to a resurgence of the virus.
"I give away teddy bears to nurseries, pre-schools and poor
families. I make exhibitions for (children's) institutions, a
kind of therapeutic teddy bear corner with about 30-50 bears
which the children can play with," Schmidt said.
"Unfortunately, because of the virus situation, I cannot do
these now."
The 62-year-old Schmidt, who has four adult children, has been
collecting teddy bears for 40 years and entered the Guinness
Book of Records in 2019 for the world's largest collection of
them.
Her passion for the bears stems from her childhood traumas.
Schmidt's parents divorced when she was four, she grew up in
very poor conditions and her mother drank heavily.
"Not only we did not have toys but we barely had clothes," she
said. "That is why I wanted a teddy bear so I could hug it and
get some love from it."
She hugs and strokes her teddies many times a day and she says
they have cured her soul.
"Now these teddy bears make up for all the hunger, all the lack
of love, lack of toys and everything. Especially when I see
children coming to see my exhibition and I see the joy and
happiness in their eyes."
(Writing by Krisztina Than, editing by Ed Osmond)
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