Romania sets Guinness record with miles-long table, raises funds for pediatric psychiatry hospital

Tens of thousands of people gathered in Romania’s capital Saturday to sit down at a miles-long table to break a Guinness record and raise money for what organizers said will be the country’s first pediatric psychiatry hospital.The 5,055-meter (3.1-mile) “Uniting Table” was sprawled along Unirii Boulevard to Constitution Square in front of Bucharest’s massive communist-era Palace of Parliament.The Romania-based organizers Bloom The World Association were awarded a certificate by Guinness World Records for the “longest table made from recycled materials.”The event brought together a reported 20,000 people at the many tables, many of which were decorated with flowers and snacks.Joanne Brent, a senior adjudicator and official onscreen judge for Guinness World Records, who joined the Bucharest event, said on stage that it proved that the record-breaking achievement had been put to good use.“Everyone, 20,000 people I am told are here today, have come around one table and a common cause,” she said.“I get to see this often, people coming together, record-breaking achievements with real-world impact.”Money raised from the event will go toward a 3,900-square-meter children’s psychiatric facility within the Obregia Hospital complex in Bucharest.It is being funded by private donations and sponsorships and will cost an estimated €16.5 million ($19.4M), according to the Metropolis Foundation, which is behind the construction project.“It is a project that started from a real need,” the foundation states on its website.“The current section at Obregia Hospital operates in an old, overcrowded space, which no longer meets the medical and emotional needs of children … It means the chance to bring closer to reality a hospital that will benefit over 5,700 children facing severe mental illnesses annually.”The foundation says the number of children diagnosed with serious mental disorders, such as depression, behavioral disorders, substance use, autism a...