THE proud family of a beloved philanthropist will be carrying on his good works in his name with the launch of a new aid organisation.
The Mohammed Jameel bin Mansoor Al Arayedh Charitable Foundation has been founded by his son Nasser Al Arayedh and two daughters, Maryam and Jehan, to mark the fifth anniversary of the death of the man they call their ‘shining example’.
The late Mr Al Arayedh was born in 1933 and died at the age of 84 on May 14, 2017. He was the second son of late Mansoor bin Mohammed Al Arayedh (1896-1968) and Fahima Mohammed Hussein Murad.
Late Mansoor bin Mohammed Al Arayedh
“The practice of charitable work after the death of my father has not stopped,” Nasser told the GDN. “His life held an extended history of giving, generosity and community service.
“My father and grandfather were firm believers that the merchant class must engage in charitable work, which stems from a strong national identity that recognises the importance of serving the nation,” he said.
“They instilled in us the importance of giving and serving, and our father taught us to serve without distinction. He also taught us to keep doing what is right regardless of the possible consequences. He will always be our shining example.”
Nasser, the foundation’s board of trustees chairman and Al Arayedh Group Holding chairman, revealed that the aim would be to seek to serve the local community and carry on his father’s social and charitable endeavours by identifying people’s needs and requirements and seeking solutions to their material and moral life challenges.
“We will also not forget to support our father’s poetic and literary activities, with which he was preoccupied from the start of his life until his death,” he added.
Maryam revealed that an annual plan would be implemented by the foundation to highlight the scope of its activities, which she said would reflect the importance of civil collective work towards enhancing the spirit of ‘one family’ and social cohesion in the local community.
“The Foundation will co-operate directly with the official and specialised civil authorities to provide material and moral assistance to needy families, in addition to providing emergency aid in case of calamities and helping needy students to continue studying inside and outside Bahrain,” said Maryam, the vice-chairwoman and chief executive of the foundation’s board of trustees and investment affairs director at Al Arayedh Group Holding.
“It will also contribute to charity and social assistance for the elderly and people with special needs, as well as participate in the construction and renovation of places of worship.”
Jehan, the foundation’s board treasurer and strategies director at the Al Arayedh Group Holding, noted that her late father instilled in his children a sense of social responsibility, making it a part of their daily lives.
“Each of us had been entrusted with a responsibility in giving and caring since childhood, which was a trend that we are eager to pass on to future generations,” she said.
Labour Minister Jameel Humaidan remembers fondly the late Mr Al Arayedh’s charitable endeavours and is impressed with the foundation’s formation, sure that he would have been proud of his son and daughter's proposal.
Mr Humaidan
“With the encouragement of the rational leadership and its official institutions, Bahraini families in general, and the Al Arayedh family in particular, have played a prominent role in the fields of social and charitable work since the establishment of the State of Institutions,” he said.
“The family took upon themselves a great responsibility to bear a large part of the charitable and social work, as they were among the leading names in the field of social responsibility in Bahrain.
“This good seed was passed down from his late humble father, Mansoor Al Arayedh, the first Bahraini to establish housing projects serving a large segment of the needy.”
During the third Arab Gulf Week for Voluntary Work in 1989, the ministry presented the late Mr Al Arayedh with a certificate of appreciation for his efforts, as well as a shield honouring him among the pioneers of social work carried out by civil and private organisations and institutions.
He was well known for supporting the Al Nahda Society, the Friendship Society for the Blind and the Al Oruba Club. He also supported the Al Hoora and Qudaibiya charitable foundations and various others in the Capital and Northern Governorates.
Arab Parliament speaker MP Adel Al Asoumi highlighted his help offered to the residents of Qudaibiya and Hoora describing his contributions as ‘notable’ and of making a ‘positive impact’.
Mr Al Asoumi
Hoora and Al Qudaibiya Charitable Association head Hassan Ali Abdullah echoed similar sentiments, highlighting the humanitarian’s interaction and involvement in many cases and his closeness to the people, as did Friendship Society for the Blind chairman Hussain Al Holaibi and Al Orouba Club Board of Directors chairman Mahmoud Al Qassab.
The foundation’s board member Salam Ahmed Abdull Qader also remembered his kind deeds and benevolence. “The setting up of a foundation in his name reflects the goodness of the father and the grandfather in the children – that of serving the poor and needy of the nation,” he added.
raji@gdn.com.bh
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