A large group of students from Dubai schools united and assembled school kits for children from low-income families in the UAE with more than 3000 people participating. The second phase of the Students for Students program launched by Dubai Cares involved packing and distributing 9,000 school kits for students.
These school kits are some of the items that Dubai Cares will send to charity schools and organizations in the UAE to distribute to students before the start of the new academic term. Beneficiaries are the Al Etihad Charity Foundation, Al Ihsan Charity Association, Hemaya Schools, and National Charity Schools.
As stated by Hassan Sawalmeh, the representative of the National Charity Schools, the mentioned initiative has a special purpose for children from needy families.
He said, “It brings joy and happiness to their hearts and makes them feel that they are not alone in facing the challenges in life.”
“From the perspective of volunteers, this initiative is also crucial since it helps provision approbation and positive dialogue, which in turn brings respect and skill acquisition. We would like to express our appreciation to Dubai Cares for organizing this event and look forward to more participation in such activities that enhance humanitarian and compassionate efforts that benefit the community.”
Students wish to bring a change
In total 3573 students willingly participated along with teachers, parents, and family members as volunteers for educating underprivileged children.
Among the volunteers was Alanna Abram, a young lady from Fujairah College.
“Oh, we enjoyed the school packing activity you initiated.”
“What impressed me was how students of all age levels contributed to making this initiative such a success; some even wrote the postcards by hand, and everyone took so much care to pack the backpacks precisely; it was heartwarming to see Each student drawing an illustration on a postcard themselves, and everyone made sure that all the backpacks were packed meticulously. Supporting local charities is crucial, as they are responsible for catering to the needs of our community. I hope these backpacks are a nice surprise for them in the new school year.”
During the first phase, many schools in Dubai and other areas arranged several events such as spring fairs, bake sales, and games, from which students collected funds for the project. These culminated in the summoning of more than Dh 700,000 which Dubai Cares, part of Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives (MBRGI) used to source for essential school items including school bags and stationery.
Significant efforts
Speaking to Abdulah Ahmed Alshehhi the Chief Operating Officer of the organization said that the community incorporated with the 14 participating schools the organization was indeed inspired by the spirit demonstrated by the community.
“I equally want to express my appreciation for the efforts made by students, teachers as well as parents which has been magnificent,” he said.
Their actions will go a long way in touching the lives of many children; providing them with learning tools for an academic year.
He also said the feedback, about the initiative, has been very encouraging.
“It also actively engages the students in making a change to the society. We extend our appreciation to all the participating schools and students for their hard work and support and anticipate the participation of more schools next year.”
From the participants of the event, Leanne Fridd, the principal Safa Community School expressed pride in her students.
“[They] have behavioral competencies in leadership where in the spring fair held in February, raised over Dh 80,000. We had incredible students packing over 1000 school kits,” she said.
Sure, we are looking forward to seeing the reaction of the recipients when they receive the kits in the new academic year.
‘On behalf of the students, I would like to say a very big thank you to Dubai Cares for pushing this initiative and for giving us the opportunity; the organization has been great, and we look forward to partnering with them again in the future,’ she said.