32 July 2013 www.bahrainthismonth.com happeningsclubssocieties A Season for Giving The Palm Association is building on its existing initiatives to bring smiles on the faces of the less fortunate this summer. The Holy Month of Ramadan will see many magnanimous souls coming forward to help the underprivileged in Bahrain. Coordinating some of these initiatives is The Palm Association, the 13-year-old charity working exclusively for impoverished families in the Kingdom. ‘The Palm’ helps to provide for Bahraini women and their families who have fallen on hard times, either through the death of a spouse, illness, divorce or disability. Support is offered through various programmes, including the provision of food parcels, white goods, the refurbishment of dilapidated homes and help to educate their children. “Donations are the life blood of a charity such as The Palm Association and we’re very grateful to see donors such as DHL staff and the children from the British School of Bahrain contribute foodstuff so wholeheartedly towards our Ramadan food distribution campaign,” says Jennifer Downey Gill, corporate communications officer. DHL staff have provided bags of rice, cereals, powdered milk and other grocery essentials for the Ramadan campaign, as well as money, while the infants’ classes from The British School of Bahrain came forward with cooking oil, milk, tinned fruits and other foodstuff. The groceries have been collected by The Palm volunteers and will be distributed to families in need during Ramadan. This initiative is in addition to the charity’s feed-a-family programme, where it provides BD20 food parcels to 155 shortlisted families every month. The families are identified in periodic audits which are done annually and sometimes on a monthly basis, when the situation of the beneficiaries is assessed by the charity. “We are helped by our Bahraini advisers, who act as translators and cultural interpreters in gauging the situation. Once we find the family doing better, we still follow them closely, and though they may no longer need immediate assistance with food, underlying medical, educational or household needs may subsequently come to light. At the same time, we try to identify others who are more in need of assistance,” explains Jennifer. On the occasion of Eid, The Palm will give out 200 vouchers of BD10 each for traditional outfits to orphaned children living with foster families in Muharraq. On the education front, the charity is currently funding the educational expenses of seven medical students and three nursing students in Bahrain. The Palm funds a full-time activities coordinator at the children’s oncology ward in Salmaniya Medical Complex and another Bahraini helper who plans activities for children with thalassemia at the same hospital. New Board Earlier this year the charity elected a new committee, with Eibhlin Crosse as chairperson, which is now streamlining the association, making it even more efficient. “Since most of our benefactors are corporate organisations, we have always striven to ensure that every penny donated is well spent. We have now put a business model into effect. We are a voluntary non-profit association that is as efficient as a corporate entity, but still retains its heart,” says Jennifer. BSB Infants School Ramadan Food Drive 2013 What better way to embrace the Holy Month than getting into the spirit of giving? This year, the Al Reem Charity Foundation is holding its fourth annual event to raise money for lessfortunate families. Local and regional entrepreneurs are invited to sell their products and a certain percentage is donated to the foundation. The proceeds raised are then personally distributed by the foundation to families before Eid. The exhibition, which runs July 12 at the Fatima Kanoo Hall, is open from 8.30pm to 12.30am. E Email alreemcharity@ gmail.com. A Helping Hand
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