Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — It all started with an idea; one where the fundamentals of giving are instilled in Manarat students, as they undergo real life experiences and induce a positive change in their community. With such a momentous vision set to be achieved, the school got the ball rolling, and after some trial and error, successfully struck up a partnership with the truly spectacular Bunyan Women’s Charity for Social Development. The core of our message to the general student body was always that of encouragement towards voluntary work, for as seniors, the students took part in numerous community service activities and truly appreciated the importance of such activities.

After assembling a team of some of the most dedicated and passionate students in Manarat, the school set towards its first big project: a food drive. With an explosive combination of hard work and meticulous planning, campaigning and organizing, over 1,800 food cans were collected from our students in the space of a mere three weeks. On the back of such a resounding success, the school proceeded to distribute the said cans over the weekend and had a significant excess after the first distribution; it took two trips, one to Al Oud and the other to Al Swaeday, to completely distribute every can collected!

Following those distributions, the volunteering team was highly proud of what they managed to accomplish. “We have managed to provide aid to hundreds of families in need and that should be a great source of pride for us, and a tradition to be carried out by Manarat for years to come,” the students said.

Principal Khalid At-Tamimi added “I am very proud of our students; I hope they continue doing such great work and May Allah reward them for this.”

With the crucial positive reinforcement from the school coupled with the experience from orchestrating the food drive, the school is currently expanding its horizons by collecting clothing items from our student body in order to provide a warmth and happiness in the hearts of those struggling through this cold winter. The amount of items of clothing collected so far is highly promising, and in a matter of few weeks, we shall take the next step in cementing our position as a truly giving school, by donating those items.

As Bunyan Organization confirms “...everything was set up by them in a very organized manner and it helped us distribute with ease.”

The students were able to organize, allocate, manage, collect and distribute on their very own. This exhibits, without a doubt, the true untapped potential that lies within our youth. In Manarat, we strongly believe in giving back to the community, and in our youth lies our future, aspirations and success. Promoting and encouraging youth volunteering is the entire purpose of our project, and is essential towards building a smarter and more responsible generation to carry our future on its shoulders.

Mikail said, “It is so important that students are given every opportunity to make an impact on the community through their own initiatives. I’m so proud of our students here at Manarat — they found a problem that needed solving, worked out a solution, and developed the partnerships they needed to make it happen. It’s just the one of many other great things to come insha’Allah.”

Attan said, “Manarat Al Riyadh International School and it’s students are often recognized for their high academic achievements, but it is an overdue pleasure to also be recognized as a school wherein it’s students lead the way in social responsibility.”