Takatof Volunteer Programme receives Dh107, 000 donation

Abu Dhabi: The Emirates Foundation (a philanthropic organization) has recently received a donation of Dh107, 000 for its Takatof Volunteer Programme from the British School-Al Khubairat in Abu Dhabi.

Takatof – ‘shoulder to shoulder' in English, is a voluntary social program designed by the Emirates Foundation to create a culture of volunteering across the UAE. Its aim is to promote community assistance among youth.

The donation was raised during a gala dinner staged by Al Khubairat to celebrate the schools 40th anniversary. Funds were collected through tickets priced at Dh250 per person. Over 450 families and parents were among the attendees.

The donation was given last week to Maytha Al Habsi, Emirates Foundation Director of Communications and Director of Takatof by the principal of the school, Paul Coackley.

“This generous donation will be put to good use for our ‘Takatof for School Renovation' Programme – where we carry out complete repainting and refurbishing project in various national schools throughout the seven Emirates. We are most grateful to the school for this latest demonstration of its ties with Abu Dhabi, and to the many parents, teachers and friends who made the contribution possible,'' said Al Habsi.

Coackley told Gulf News the school chose to donate the amount to the Takatof programme in order to help with volunteer works. “Being a school ourselves we felt that donating an amount to help build a school is a good idea and a token of appreciation for receiving support from Abu Dhabi throughout our 40 years,'' he said.

The school is currently in talks with the Emirates Foundation regarding following up on the donation. “Our next step is to identify a specific school where our students and teachers can volunteer in decoration and beautification works.''

Al Khubairat is one of the oldest British Schools in the UAE, open since 1968 and was incorporated by an Amiri Decree from the late president of the UAE, Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, in 1971. There are currently 1,740 pupils enrolled in the school, many of whom are involved in voluntary work throughout their academic year.

“We have a broad view of education. Through involving students in projects related to charitable work we make sure we create leaders in communities who are able to make important contributions around them,'' said the school principal.

Al Khubairat has 10 to 20 parents involved in volunteer work. “They are the ones who initially put the gala dinner together and made this event possible. Each year the number and team members change. Without this friends group, the school would not have been able to organize that many events. They put up a contact list for us, organize meetings for parents, and do a lot of good for our school,'' said Coackley.