Special effort

Schoolchildren raise Dhs 1.5 million for charities

Over Dhs 1.5 million was donated to select charities by the Varkey Group on Thursday at a special function hosted by the Modern High School, Dubai.

Presented by Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research and Chancellor of Emirates University and Higher Colleges of Technology, to six local charities involved in improving the quality of life of children, this fund was raised in a series of events called the 'Children for Children' campaign.

The money was presented to Al Noor Training Centre, Dubai Centre for Special Needs, Future Centre, Medicins Sans Frontieres, Red Crescent Society and the Rashid Paediatric Therapy Centre.

Through the month of January atleast 30 events like fun fairs, charity runs and raffles were organised by students of the Varkey Group schools throughout UAE to raise over Dhs 1.2 million.

The Varkey Group chairman, Sunny Varkey, donated an additional Dhs 300,000 to bring the total contribution to over Dhs 1.5 million.

Sheikh Nahyan commended the Varkey Group's effort. "I am very pleased to see your students, teachers and administrators joining together in a common cause in their quest to be partners and supporters of useful initiatives," said Sheikh Nahyan.

Stressing on the role of students' involvement with the community, he remarked, "These activities offer opportunities for our students and our schools to make a difference in our future well being. The vitality of our communities is significantly enhanced by the quality of this involvement," he said.

The theme song, Open your heart and give it all you've got, sung by children from different Varkey schools in Sharjah and Dubai, set pace for the event on Thursday.

"Teaching children to have a commitment to community and to become caring citizens of the world is an important aspect of the educational programme that is provided in our schools," said Sunny Varkey in his welcome address of the evening.

"We have a commitment to help shape a better world, by teaching our children the value of caring for others," he added.

In his overview of the charity events organised by the Varkey Group, Suresh Mathur, director of education, Asian Schools, Varkey Group, elaborated the role of children in improving the lives of the less fortunate.

"We have a long tradition of responding to those in need; be it the children with special needs or to crises around the world. We believe that by sharing and caring, especially towards children with special needs, our children become more sensitive to the needs of others, thus making a positive contribution to society. In the process they become more responsible world citizens themselves," remarked Mathur.

In what would have seemed an impossible task, students from the Dubai Center for Special Needs presented a rhythmic dance sequence.