Washington, DC – On December 23, 2004 the Hungarian American Coalition received a $25,000 grant from the Charles Simonyi Fund for the Arts and Sciences to support hippo therapy for disabled children in Hungary. The grant’s beneficiary will be the Eilika Habsburg Foundation, located in Sóskút on the outskirts of Budapest.

The Eilika Habsburg Foundation is one of the most important rehabilitation centers of its nature in Hungary. Their program works with more than 100 disabled children and adults who attend weekly sessions. The Foundation is managed by Eilika Habsburg-Lothringen, a professional therapist who is donating her services and considerable financial resources to help the disabled in Hungary.

The grant will partially fund the construction of an indoor riding course so that the disabled children and adults can have therapy sessions during the winter as well as the summer months. The construction is well underway and the new facility is expected to be operational by March 2005.

Maximilian Teleki, President of the Hungarian American Coalition, said that “it is remarkable how much good can be made with the generosity of a few to help dedicated professionals like Eilika Habsburg-Lothringen. We encourage others to help the Foundation’s mission to improve the life of the physically impaired.”