My first Publication Alumni Magazine21-online | Page 5

ACS
Alumni Magazine
Issue 21, June 2019
Dear fellow Alumni,
I can’t even begin to tell you how incredible my return to ACS has been. Let’s just say
it was an apparent piece of borderline marvelous serendipity and I am still quite flab-
bergasted by getting to experience the campus, my memories and my current role every
day. What helps me cope is an important distinction that recently dawned on me: back
in the day I anticipated the bell announcing the end of class, nowadays I am much more
interested in it signaling the beginning of class. So I can go get coffee. No lines. Students
aren’t allowed coffee though. And they do stand in lines. Poor jokes aside, I feel like going
back to ACS has turned my life around, with a little emotional and nostalgic twist, and
with an enlightening one – getting to experience first hand life at the College nowadays.
For those of you I haven’t met, let me briefly introduce myself. I’m Sasho Tomov from the
Class of ’04. If you were around about the time of this class, you might have seen me in the
school musical productions, might have read some of my attempts at writing in “Fountain”
(boy, nowadays’ “The Fountain” is even more incredible, grab a copy of the latest edition!),
you might have witnessed my spectacular failures at volleyball, or heard my thrill-inducing
screaming with the Choir or bass playing with Outbreak (courtesy of a few select individ-
uals of the Class of ’03). After ACS I spent four years at Dickinson College in eastern PA
(with some of you) and I returned home as soon as I was given my Bachelor’s degree in
Psychology. I spent the next ten years with a telco in Bulgaria, working in HR, communica-
tions, engagement and other things. I joined the Development Team at ACS in December
of 2018 as Director of Communications. Since then I’ve been trying to live up to this new
role’s expectations of me. I’ve got to admit: it sort of reminds me of the challenges I was up
against during my years as a student here. Just like back then, I got help from many of you
and today I get help from Petia.
Published by:
The ACS Development
Office
Chief Editor:
Alexander Tomov ’04
[e-mail]
Editors:
Petia Ivanova ’97
Tim Ward
Iain Flannery
ACS Alumni Magazine is published
twice per year (June and December)
for the alumni of the American
College of Sofia. We welcome all
readers’ feedback, submissions and
suggestions.
Letters may be edited for publication.
©All rights reserved
I want to give a “Shout Out” to Petia Ivanova of the Class of 1997 – one of the “Mythical”
first ones. Her sincere care, authentic sense of what ACS is, and tireless mentoring have
already taken me a long way. The same goes for the rest of the Development Office crew
– Georgi Iliev, Georgi Metodiev and Zori Haidutova. I should also mention Roumy Mi-
haylova ’05, whose shoes I am, in a way, trying to walk around in, and man, those are some
big shoes (figuratively) and when she was in them, they left behind some deep tracks.
I want to give a special “Shout Out” to the celebrating classes: The 2004, of course, amaz-
ing class, and we all secretly know we are better than anyone else!  It is an honor and
pleasure for me to be close friends with many of you! Ever since we graduated, it has
been the “Time of my life”! The class of 1999, where I’m lucky to have a few amazing
acquaintances & friends, stay cool, you guys! The class of 2009 (new-age Millennials) and
the youngest among us celebrating – the class of 2014. To all of you – congratulations on
the anniversary and thank you for staying in touch!
Although the mechanics of ACS giving financial aid have changed, it is now that I’m “on
the inside” that I actually appreciate what that means to students. And let me tell you
– while ACS is staying current with nowadays’ students, the academic standards and de-
mands we all remember stand. I hope that in the following pages you will establish that to
be true for yourselves, through my interview with Joana Nikolova ’19.
I also got to speak to Tsvetan Iliev ’06 and listened to the speech Dena Popova ’06 delivered
for the graduating class of 2019 at their Commencement. Sadly, this year we lost Birgitta
Cattelle, and I am thankful to Georgi Klissurski ’10 for sharing some fond memories and
reflections of their friendship. On the bright side – congratulations to Krassi Tomov ’05
and his wife Julia Masleva Tomova ’06. In the meantime, Kosta Karakashyan ’14 has been
involved with some amazing projects, while the stories told by Sava Savchev ’44 are like a
time warp into the glorious pre-war years here at the College.
Hey, this turned out longer than I first imagined, so – thank you for holding a copy of the
ACS Alumni Magazine Issue 21 – it means we made it, even though (or because) we stuck
to the classic ACS tradition – “Right before it’s due”. Thank you for staying engaged,
thank you for celebrating your anniversary by giving and thank you for who you are. It
means a bunch and it testifies a lot to the College. I hope you enjoy this issue, come join
us in the Alumni Facebook group, follow the American College of Sofia on Facebook and
Instagram and don’t forget to subscribe to our Newsletter. Because amazing things are
happening at ACS to this day, and, you could be a part of them!
Alexander J. Tomov ’04
Stay in touch,
Sasho