THANK YOU !

Over 200 selfless and hard working Dhaka Project volunteers have donated their time to help countless children, youth and families in need over the past 3 years. This is a remarkable figure and an extraordinary achievement. But I came to a realisation today after listening to Marcelo Taborda feedback about his trip to Dhaka how it was the friend of a volunteer who played a major role in fundraising for the project. It suddenly dawned on me that one single volunteer is a representation of ten, twenty, fifty others, or more. There is a long trail of kindness that goes back much farther and runs much deeper than what may appear. There are family members helping out with fees and donations; there are friends collecting toys and books to go to Dhaka ; there are work colleagues , school kids baking cakes and organising fundraising morning teas. The trail goes on and on...
Today I wish to not just acknowledge the volunteers who are on the ground but also thank and acknowledge the thousands and thousands of friends and family members who are working behind the scenes, providing strength and support to the volunteers who are out there trying to make a difference in the world. We could not do what we do without them. Just like a flower needs sunshine and water to grow, we too at The DHAKA Project need nourishment from others to give us the strength to go forward.
So today I want to say a TREMENDOUS THANK YOU for the people in my life who provide me with the nourishment that enables you to go off into the world to help others and fulfil my dreams.
As John Lennon so famously sang, "we get by with a little help from our friends."
You and I and all of our friends, together, will make this world a better, brighter place for us all to live.

Maria