A book collection drive staged by a local volunteer charity has been a resounding success, with hundreds of tomes set to be donated to an orphanage.
Books for a Cause was organised by the Sacred Heart School (SHS) Interact Club, which is sponsored by the Rotary Club of Salmaniya (RCS).
The Interact Club – a Rotary-sponsored service organisation for young people aged 12 to 18 – was established at SHS just last month and currently comprises 47 high school students who have already collected more than 350 books from kind-hearted donors.
The project was inspired following a visit by an RCS delegation to the school.
RCS president Hanadi Al Ansari told the GDN that the students gave them an impressive presentation showcasing the initiatives they hoped to undertake, ranging from teaching children from low-income families to helping animals.
“They made a video documenting their ideas, adding some humour so that it can appeal to a wider audience. It was wonderful how they brought everything together,” she said.
Among the students’ proposals, the plan to donate books particularly resonated with the rotary members.
RCS board secretary Seema Ahmad – an SHS alumna who attended the meeting – said the timing of the idea could not have been better, as the Rotary was preparing for its annual school bag distribution to several entities including an orphanage.
“The orphanage told us they wanted their children to develop reading as a habit, and we thought, why not bring the two programmes together?” said the Bahraini humanitarian, who has volunteered with RCS for the past 10 years.
“While we’re sponsoring the SHS Interact, we gave the students complete freedom to drive the project, and the result has been incredible. They have collected 380 books in a matter of weeks,” Ms Ahmad added.
Spurred on by the response received, RCS will continue to have at least one annual event with the club, confirmed Ms Ansari.
RCS celebrated its 53rd anniversary two years ago and is part of Rotary International, a worldwide service club organisation with more than 1.4 million members.
Founded in 1971, RCS fosters strong relationships and encourages all its members to contribute their expertise to the problems and needs of society.
It has also been finding ways to improve the quality of life for people in its local community, and promoting peace and understanding internationally by sponsoring or volunteering on international projects.
Furthermore, it has been empowering the youth and young professionals through leadership development programmes such as Rotaract Bahrain, Rotary Youth Leadership Awards, and Rotary Youth Exchange.
“We have a ‘four-way test’ to guide us: Is it the truth? Is it fair to all concerned? Will it build goodwill and better friendships, and will it be beneficial to all concerned,” Ms Ansari explained.
Additionally, she revealed that they are working on the latest edition of the Dream Home project, which will benefit more families this year.
Each year the club renovates the home of an economically challenged family in order to live in a healthy and safe environment.
More details will be shared in the coming weeks.
To donate books, follow @rotarysalmaniya on Instagram.
melissa@gdnmedia.bh
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