A group of teenaged students have banded together to hold a charity football tournament today – the proceeds of which will go to the victims of a deadly earthquake that struck Morocco’s Marrakesh-Safi region last September.
Nearly 3,000 people lost their lives as a result of the earthquake, which occurred on September 8 and measured 6.8-6.9 on the Richter Scale. More than 2.8 million people – including 100,000 children – from Marrakesh and areas surrounding the Atlas Mountains were affected, leading to many countries offering humanitarian assistance.
The charity football tournament, which is being organised by an initiative called Faz3a (actually, ‘fazza’, the Arabic word for ‘unity’) co-founded by St Christopher’s School 10th graders, Rania Ashraf and Sara Sharaf last July that intends to foster unity amongst Bahraini youth, will be held at The Football Academy (TFA) in Saar and has a fundraising target of BD1,000. More than 100 players have signed up for the 10-team tournament.
All the 11 members (six female, five male) of the Faz3a team are aged 15 to 16 years; all but one – who is in 11th grade – are 10th graders and all are students at either St Christopher’s School or the British School of Bahrain (BSB).
“Sara and I came up with the idea in July of starting a forum through which we could help underprivileged children in the kingdom,” Rania, who is also a Faz3a co-director and studies at St Christopher’s, told the GDN.
“So we set about creating the Faz3a initiative which has a primary mission of fostering unity among Bahraini youth and to provide a safe and inclusive space for everyone.
“We have organised this charity football tournament to build a strong sense of community with the primary objective being to aid the victims of the earthquake in Morocco. In the lead-up to this event, we’ve held numerous meetings with sponsors and collaborated with Bahraini businesses to set up stalls at the venue, creating a unified community that is working together to raise funds for the earthquake victims in Morocco.”
Sara, who is also a St Christopher’s student, added that, in order to encourage local youth to take an initiative in the community, Faz3a had invited students from all over Bahrain to set up stalls at the event.
“Our long-term aim is to build a stronger and more unified future for Bahraini youth,” she explained.
“We also intend to create an app that will enable students, who have had limited opportunities for education, to get tutoring and access to the resources they need to build a prosperous future for themselves.”
Meanwhile, Mariam Al Sammak, who studies at BSB, told the GDN that in her capacity as the events and planning manager, she and Hriday Dawani – a fellow BSB student and the assistant head of events and planning – had been very thorough as they set about organising the football tournament.
“Hriday and I meticulously orchestrated every detail, from selecting the perfect football pitch to co-ordinating with food vendors and establishing precise schedules,” she said.
Hriday added that the event had come together as a result of cohesive teamwork. “While we encountered challenges along the way, especially considering that this is our inaugural event, we tackled these obstacles as a cohesive team,” he said.
The Faz3a treasury manager Giselle Menezes told the GDN that she and Abdulla Al Furaiji – both BSB students – had worked hard to prepare financial reports for the tournament and had also approached Bahraini commercial enterprises for sponsorships.
“I joined Faz3a after learning about their mission which is to create opportunities for young people access quality education and build a brighter future for themselves and their communities,” Giselle said.
“It has been an honour to serve in this role and play a part in advancing sporting and education initiatives in our community.”
Abdulla, the assistant treasury head, added that, even as he spent long hours crunching numbers in the lead-up to the tournament, what stood out to him was the remarkable camaraderie in the Faz3a team.
“The welcoming and kind nature of everyone involved is a crucial element when embarking on significant projects and events like this one,” he said.
The Faz3a marketing team, headed by Omid Abdali, who is enrolled at St Christopher’s with Yasmin Al Fahad – a BSB student and the only 11th grader in the group – as the assistant marketing manager, also worked diligently to spread word about the charity tournament around the kingdom.
“Yasmin and I successfully caught the eyes of many through the stories and posts on our growing online platform,” Omid told the GDN.
“This has led to a large number of people wanting to join and help by playing in matches or setting up stalls and even the generous engagements of businesses providing services.
Yasmin added that local businesses with stalls at the tournament will contribute a portion of their proceeds to the cause.
“Also, during the promotion of this event, the Faz3a Instagram account gained 200 plus followers and the number continues to rise,” she told the GDN.
“I created engaging posts and stories to allow for easy access to information about the tournament and, during the course of the event, I will work with Omid to capture photos and videos, as well as create interesting content.”
Faz3a operations director Ayaan Abid, a BSB student, told the GDN that he joined the initiative because he was eager to give back to the community.
“We have already been given aid by so many thoughtful volunteers and sponsors, whether it’s the 100 people playing in the tournament or those directly donating money,” he said.
“And, while we hope to raise as much money as possible for the people affected by the earthquake in Morocco, we also hope that everyone who comes to the tournament is able to enjoy the event.”
Benjamin Marks, the Faz3a onboarding manager and a St Christopher’s student, told the GDN that he joined the forum for the opportunity to collaborate with others in his community to work towards a greater good for humanity.
“This charity football tournament will be a fun and creative way to raise money for a good cause, with the help of our sponsors, of course,” he said.
And Aahil Khan, a St Christopher’s student and the initiative’s app development manager, told the GDN that the Faz3a app – which is currently being made – will have a positive impact on the lives of underprivileged youth in Bahrain.
“As a collective, we understand the limits placed on such children and embarked on a mission to connect them to a means of education through innovative technology,” he said.
“Meanwhile, the planning process for this charity football tournament spanned several weeks but the collaborative effort of our team has left me with a memorable experience, motivating me to do more with this amazing platform that we have created.”