The village of Stoikite lies in a hollow in the Central Rodopi Mountain. It is surrounded by varied landscape. The huge elevation of Mount Perelik goes to the southwest through the Eshei Kulak pass and Mount Cherni Vrah to the Mount Snezhanka. At the northeast stands the continuation of the Chernatitsa Mountain – Kara Tepe and Mechi Chal – that delimitates the basins of the rivers Vacha and Asenitsa. The average altitude is 1410 m. Therefore, the summer in Stoikite is cool and the winter is soft.

Like for most of the villages in the Central Rodopi Mountain, there are legends telling that the settlement was founded at the time of the Muslim invasion. At that time, people who were trying to evade being forced to adopt the Islam came in these parts and founded the village. The legend says that when the forcible conversion to Islam finally ceased – in the period 1705-1720 – the Christians decided to settle in one place so that they could build a church and improve their life.

The second reason why the village of Stoikite was populated was the outbreak of plague in 1828-1834. The local people knew very well how to avoid it and escaped to the forest as soon as the first symptoms appeared.

The years went by in peaceful labor and earning honest living. Although the village was divided into neighborhoods, it kept growing. In 1867 it counted more than a hundred houses and about 110 to 115 families.

........................ The building of the school ...........

In 1867 people started talking about building a school. In the spring of 1870, the men from the village gathered together at the Kushtinarov meadow, the place where now are the church, the old school and the dancing ground. The place was wide and not much steep, and it was in the sun almost all day, which was good for this kind of building. The owner of the place agreed to grant a piece at the lower end for the future school. The work started at once. All the villagers volunteered to build the school. In a few months the construction was done: a one-storey building with two classrooms, a hallway and a basement to store the wood. The first teacher – Stoyu Kalaydzhiev from Shiroka Laka – openesd the school in 1870.

................... The church .........

When they had finished the construction of the school , the villagers began thinking about building a church. In 1874, the local notables convened to discuss the way and the place for the building of the church. Each one suggested a place near his neighborhood. At that time, the wealthiest and most influential man of the village was Kolyadzhika. He stood there and listened to the other people's squabbles and finally said: “The place will be right here. I'll grant the place, one thousand coins and a present for the master mason.”

This was quite an ultimatum by the first man of the village but the men from the other neighborhoods did not agree. Finally, they found a compromise and started building next to the school.

The villagers sent two messengers to Panaret, the bishop of Plovdiv who procured the permission to build.

The foundation stone was put in 1874 by Panaret, the bishop of Plovdiv. His coming to the village was a big event. The local people welcomed him at the Eshei Kulak pass and escorted him to village surrounded by Ottoman policemen under the orders of a superintendent.

In 1876, the church had been built up to the windows but the construction was suspended for a few years due to the April Rebellion and the Liberation War. It was finished after the Liberation and finally consecrated on 5 June 1881 by the bishop of Leucia Gervasy, the assistant of Panaret.

Architecturally this is one of the most beautiful churches in the central part of the Rodopi Mountain. It is high and solid, with regular forms, well delineated corners and harmoniously distributed windows with art forged gratings. The columns that support the roof are well shaped. The iconostasis is decorated with taste. The outer side of the doors is coated with iron sheets nailed with thick forged nails.

Initially the bell was hung on two wood pillars in the schoolyard. The sound faded between the walls of the church and the school. Therefore, in 1900 the board decided, with the approval of the communal council, to build a bell tower, which now rises at the northeastern corner of the church.

Quite soon after that emerged the idea of founding a community center. On 26 October 1903 was convened a general meeting about the center.

................... The Community Centre ...................................

The meeting decided to found a community center called “ Probuda ” (“ Awakening ”). The statute was made after the pattern of other centers in the country and it was approved. They purchased a dozen of educational books, which were stored at the lower stage of the school and lent to the members of the center. The books were purchased with the funds raised from membership dues that amounted to 10 or 20 stotinki per month but were not regularly paid. The community center subscribed to the “Oralo” (“Plough”) magazine.

To liven up the cultural activity, the young managers of the center decided to give a show. They invited “professional” actors from Shiroka Laka. There is no record of what was the first show, what was the play they gave, but the room illuminated only by a couple of oil lamps was filled up with curious audience.

Several wars followed: the Balkan War, the Allies War and World War I, during which the cultural life in the village declined. However, all these wars finally ended and three young men decided to give a performance in favor of the center during the Christmas recess in 1921. Nothing had changed in the place since the first show. The play they chose was a farce and aimed to raise the spirits of the audience. The selection criterion was not the artistic quality of the piece but the number of “actors” on stage. Nevertheless, it was a great success and this encouraged the young men to give another show, a comedy.

During the following year 1922 they gave two performances.

In 1936 the managers decided to build new premises for the center. The construction however was hindered not only by the discord about its location but also by World War II, which caused incredible inflation in the country. Finally, the new center was built after 9 September 1944. The board appointed by the interim administration of the village chose the place where the building stands today.