The ‘Boost’ initiative has signed up 110 children in camps. One of those children is nine-year-old Chalana who lives with his mother Shama Di Silva. Silva, a Sri Lankan national, is a single mother working in Dubai for the past 13 years. Tracy Fountain, the founder of Boost, helped place Chalana in a summer football camp.
Silva said: “As a single mother, I have to work a lot during summer while Chalana is on holiday. As it is very hot outside, he is unable to play outdoors. Even a trip to the park is hard as it’s too hot. He would usually just sit and watch television or play inside on his own. It’s easy to notice how his behaviour changes during this time, he becomes more argumentative, upset and angry.
“Last year I saw how being at a summer camp during the school holidays helped him. He became a sociable person and was once again a happy boy. We were so lucky that Tracy was able to help get Chalana a place at a football summer camp. This gave him the freedom to play, stay active and have fun with other children while I was working. Everything I do is for Chalana so it means the world to see him come home from camp, be happy and tell me about what he has learnt that day.
“Parents like me, from lower earning families, never get the opportunity to send their children to summer camps and it’s wonderful to see this programme. It will give so many children opportunities they never would have had.”
Another child benefiting from the initiative is nine-year-old Mohammad Ilham Inas who lives with his parents Mohammad Inas and Ramsan Riyana in Dubai.
His mother said: “In the past, the summer months have been hard for our family. Usually we can’t get access to summer camps for our children as money is very tight. We have to think about the children as it is so hot for them to play outside and as a result they usually spend most of the summer inside playing games or watching television. They become lethargic and you see a change in their behaviour. They become easily irritated, which is not normal for them.
“I am so thankful that Ilham has the opportunity to attend a football camp this summer. It is fantastic to know that when we go to work he is going to be able to go off and enjoy his day and learn new skills and play football with other children. It is not very often that we have time during the summer holidays to go out as a family or that my son even gets to play outside with other children, so it is really nice to have this opportunity.”
