JEWEL'S BIRTHDAY

Despite 5th of July being a hectic day with all the report cards being distributed and the prize giving ceremony being held, The Dhaka Project did not forget to celebrate a very special occasion. It was a birthday!
But not just any birthday, it was Jewel's birthday, who is currently working as the volunteer manager and has been with The Dhaka Project since the very beginning.
We had a surprise planned from him and it was a successful one as he looked in awe when he found everyone gathered around him singing to him the old words once again "HAPPY BIRTHDAY".
During this time, he kept on repeating how happy and surprised he was which symbolized what the whole thing really meant to him.
Anyway, we the brought in the birthday cake and placed it in front of the already overwhelmed man. Trust me when I say this, as soon as he saw the little surprise that we arranged for him, his entire face bloomed open as if he had struck gold!!!
Jewel then went on to cut the cake and distributed it amongst his office collegues, each time thanking them for the huge surprise.
All in all, it was a pleasure celebrating the birthday of a man who has spent such a long time with The Dhaka Project and has dedicated his days to serving the poor and needy.
The Dhaka Project congratulates Jewel and wishes him all the best for his future?

GARAGE SALE

A fundraising event was held on the 22^nd of June .
It was a garage sale being conducted by Ibrahim.
Earlier, Maria and Sharon had brought with them some clothes for The Dhaka Project when they flew into Dhaka. As they left early, Ibrahim decided to sell those clothes and use it to raise some money for The Dhaka Project.
The clothes were sold to the parent’s of the community by Ibrahim. A total of 7,000.00 BDT was raised from the garage sale.Not only was the garage sale benefiting for us but also for the parent’s and the children who hardly get to buy such clothes due to their poor financial state.
We are thankful to Maria and Sharon for bringing those clothes for The Dhaka Project and to Ibrahim for carrying out the task on behalf of selling those clothes to the parents.Also our gratitude goes to all donors in Dubai who used to fill our storage room with all kinds of items.
Unfortunately, we lost the mezzanine and the new drop-off point is yet to be known !

EK PRIZE DISTRIBUTION

After the results were given out, the annual EK prize distribution ceremony was held. It was a ceremony where everyone was rewarded for some particular achievement.
Teachers having not only a high level of skill but also perfect attendance over the last four months were rewarded by the principal of EK school Parveen Sultana.
The teachers’ appreciation could be seen clearly from the expression on their faces.And who could forget the students. They too were given attractive gifts by the principal. The environment around was full of fun and laughter as the gifts gladdened everyone’s heart……..Finally, the principal of the EK school was presented a gift by the project manager of The Dhaka Project, Mr. Arifur Rahman….

GOODS DISTRIBUTION

On the 20th of June, Maria, Sharon and Ibrahim decided to distribute away some goods that they bought for The Dhaka Project. The huge hearted distributors spent a massive total of about 501,088.00 BDT or 7,200.00 USD in buying goods and commodities for the children and also arranging some repair work to be taken place in the EK School. They were intent on showing their love and kindness towards The Dhaka Project and all its children and so, they brought a little something for everyone.This achievement has been possible thanks to a very generous donation come from Jebel Ali School in Dubai who keep all the time thinking about ways to help The Dhaka Project children. Almost all these goods heve been bought with their donation.
According to a volunters' report they acquired the following list of items with this donation:

• 1756 kilos of rice
• 18 cans (of 2.5 kilos) of milk
• 18 boxes of cerelac for nursery kids
• 474 soaps
• 439 tooth brushes
• 439 tooth pastes
• 7 packs of diapers (84 each)
• We paid for the after school uniforms
• 10 bikes to be bought
• 10 tickets for kids to go to Nepal
• Our bill came to 24,439.00 AED for all the above including bikes and tickets for the 10 kids

The "little something" included rice, sterilac baby meal, Nido milk, baby beds and diapers along with toothpastes, toothbrushes, soaps, shoes and tailor made clothes. They also wanted to do some repair and decorating work and so they decided to get the damaged chairs in the school fixed and to provide some floor mats for the EK School. Apart from that, they also bought two air-conditioners to be fitted in The Dhaka Project guest house.
It was a very special moment as Maria (founder of The Dhaka Project) was in between us. Its not everyday that we get to see Maria Conceicao, a resident of Portugal all the way here in Dhaka! So we knew that we had something special in our hands.
Maria, in co-operation with Sharon and Ibrahim presented all the parents with a pack of NIDO milk (2.5kg) along with a pack of sterilac meal for their children, who were being taken care of at The Dhaka Project-Day Care Centre. They also distributed baby beds for the Day Care Centre. Furthermore, the families were provided with diapers for their infants.
On the other hand, the elder children from EK were distributed with sufficient quantity of rice, tooth brush, toothpaste and soap which would last them for about one month. As if all that they had done was not enough, Maria, Ibrahim and Sharon went on to distribute good quality, luxury shoes from SHOE MART amongst the children. Our heartiest gratitude to SHOE MART once again who gleefully keep on donating.
Every parent was very grateful and obliged with the help that their children had received, as they had never imagined providing their children with such facilities and opportunities.
Such a huge contribution has had a very significant impact on The Dhaka Project and it will always be valued and appreciated by us.
The Dhaka Project expresses the deepest of gratitude to Maria, Sharon and Ibrahim who have influentially aided us with their kind distribution.
On behalf of The Dhaka Project children and families, our huge thanks go to all at Jebel Ali School; they are dedicated friends and let us without words to their kindness.
Thank you Jebel Ali !

EK REPORT CARD

The EK exam report cards were given out on the 5th of July. As expected, all the teachers and students were keenly anticipating what the day would bring. The event was a very special one as it was quite an achievement for the poverty led children to be actually getting something out completely based on the education that they received from The Dhaka Project, its teachers and its volunteers. A lot of effort had gone into arranging such a program to distribute the results.
But it did not end there. Not only did the teaching staff distribute the results but they also spent ample time with individual parent, explaining to them what result their child had achieved and advising them about what they could do to help their child.
This had to be done to ensure that the learning curve that the children were in was a stable and continued one. Yes, there were times when each counseling session stretched to beyond hours, but the teachers held their patience and delivered their message clearly.

The parent’s, from their perspectives needed to know exactly how their children were doing and what could be done on their side to bring about further improvement. They really found the counseling session helpful as they were briefed about everything that they needed and wanted to know. Having talked with the parents, we have come to know that due to this counseling they now stand at a better position regarding their children and are intent on helping them to their utmost ability.
The report card day also brought with it some results and individual achievements that we can be really optimistic about. One such achievement would be of Sumi Sultna’s, daughter of Arun Mia, who is the gatekeeper of the EK school building. Sumi made her father proud by attaining first postion in her grade 5 exams. We acknowledge her achievement and wish her the best for her future exams.
All in all, we concluded report card day with a smile as we had achieved our goal of letting the children know where they stood after a whole academic year and what they needed to do to improve themselves.

THE DHAKA PROJECT CELEBRATES A VERY SPECIAL OCCASION…..

From the day that The Dhaka Project took its first breath, the organization has relentlessly worked its heart out in bringing up smiles and joy on the millions of young faces that are being held captive by the unforgiving slums of Dhaka. Neglected and isolated, people in the slums were living life under the worst case of poverty imaginable. But, just as when things looked done and dust, thanks to some very special people, there seemed to be a way of freeing the unfortunate families and the underprivileged children from the cobweb of poverty.
The following string of events initiated by Maria Conceicao - The Founder, led to the birth of “The Dhaka Project.”
Since then, The Dhaka Project has tried to excel in each and every aspect that it has set eyes on, always keeping in mind its moto which reads “To break the cycle of poverty in slums of Dhaka through education and social development.”
Against all odds, The Dhaka Project has worked its way to yet another milestone. Yes, The Dhaka Project celebrated its 4th anniversary on the 4th of July. After its establishment in 2005, The Dhaka Project has come a long way to where it is now.
We started with a mere 39 children under our facility and now we have more than 450 children. A clear clarification of how successful we really have been! As we look back on to our four years of journey we see a lot of children prospering from The Dhaka Project School. Adults earning a living due to the help from our Adult Development Program and families living a better and healthier life due to various facilities.
But none of these could have been achieved, if it wasn’t for our well wishers. On such an occasion, The Dhaka Project would like to gratefully thank everyone who has been involved with The Dhaka Project. The volunteers- who have dedicated their skills into bringing change to the lives of many, the Donors- who have always supplied us with goods and commodities, vital for the children and the working Staff- who keep The Dhaka Project running as smoothly as it does.
The Dhaka Project thanks its entire family and wishes that such people keep coming in to help us in our deed of saving the lives of innocent children from the slums of Dhaka…..

EK AIR CREW KEEP DRESSING OUR CHILDREN

The Dhaka Project kept being helped thanks to the coordination of Cristiana and the cooperation given by many flight members who have flown to Dhaka in June.
This continuous work provides all sort of items to be available to our children and their parents,... shirts, trousers, ladies' clothes, jackets, boys' clothes, girls' clothes, babys' clothes & bibs, adults clothes, flip-flops, kids shoes & socks, t-shirts, pants, bags & backpacks, books & pencils , shampoo & conditioners, shower gel, body lotion, shavers, soap, etc. previously donated by the kind people in Dubai.
A few crew members also took their own donations.
Huge thanks to the following EK crew members:
Laura Blundell (PUR), Nathalie Decarroux, Ali Cengiz, Petra Jezova, Christina Smith, Jelena Narancic, Iza Alcarazs, DongYi Shin, Natasha Ridewood, Carlos, Acqueena Ferreira, Samuel Whitcombe, Rodrigo Monegatto, Susanna Kee, Amanda Kacomanolis, Lai Lee, Danka Drca, Tahnee Mckay, Anna Esguera, Sandra Kwon, Roda Adel Ajami, David Ring (Captain), Talal Harb, Betty Liauw, Ashleigh Ferreira, Kotomi Mizuguchi, David Ring (Captain), Adriana Soster, Naeem Basser (Capt.), Karim Mzoughi (Purser), Betty Liauw, Sumittra P., Cristiana Naufel, Daniel Candian yrs), Lenka Tomova, Isgouhi, Rummel Francisco and Adam (co-pilot).Their help on carrying small packs as the ones in the picture above is an excellent contribution to keep The Dhaka Project a different place where children can face a new future !
Also thanks to Cristiana for the huge task of coordination she took on her shoulders, and the delivery to crew members, and to Solange who took many clothes to Cristiana's house !

SHOES DISTRIBUTION

A few days back The Dhaka Project managed to proceed to the very successful distribution of the huge donation come from Shoe Mart in Dubai.The first worry, after realising how lucky we had been when getting this surprising and impressing gift, was how to carry so many shoes to Dhaka once they should be safely routed to their target, the children, being a complicated logistics task to get all there, parcel by parcel, through volunteers or flight crew members who volunteered to do it.Then The Dhaka Project got another big surprise. The longest and biggest supporter of TDP, Emirates Airline Foundation, provided a way of getting all these shoes (and more items) to the field if accompanied by volunteers who could offer their time and passion towards this mission, having 3 of them, Maria, Sharon and Ibrahim kindly been able to donate their time to do it.The Dhaka Project dedicates a huge and heartful thanks not only once again to Shoe Mart but also to Emirates Foundation who made this dream come true as well as Maria Conceicao, always concerned about her children, Sharon D'Sousa, a long, long time supporter and volunteer Ibrahim Al-Maleh, having all done an extreme sacrifice to get there with almost half a ton of donations and do the distribution to the children, keeping steady from the beginning to the end against all odds!

TOOTHPASTE, TOOTHBRUSH AND SOAP DISTRIBUTION

Having previously looked at the dental and hygiene records of the children at the daycare, playgroup, nursery and senior section of our school, The Dhaka Project was quite concerned. Just as when things did not look encouraging, we were blessed with some very essential donations from Mr. Marcello, a well wisher of The Dhaka Project. Accordingly, we wasted no time in distributing those benefits to every needy children of our school.A total of 461 students were supplied with the daily necessities, each receiving a tooth brush, a tooth paste and soap. An achievement indeed! The fact that the distribution was a success was vividly upheld as the numbers ending up at the dental care center, run by The Dhaka Project reduced. We hope that the children are soon freed of such hazardous hygiene problems.Our heartiest gratitude to Mr. Marcello who has made a major contribution in the development of a better and healthier life for the children of The Dhaka Project.

MANGO DISTRIBUTION

Bangladesh is currently going through Summer season.
So, we decided to give the children a taste of what Summer really meant in Bangladesh and what better way to do so than treat the children with everyone's favorite - the Mango fruit.
It was an absolute delight to see the children enjoying their mangoes as much as they did.
Let's just say, we had as much fun seeing them have the mangoes as they had in eating them...

MOVIE NIGHT

On the 20th of June, Tahira, James and Shimul decided to give the children an experience to be remembered. They had a movie night on her mind. Accordingly, The Dhaka Project backed them up and arranged a place where the children could sit and enjoy a movie. The best that we could avail was the roof of our Dhaka Project school-senior section building. Since we were to display the movie on a projector screen, the wise decision, of showing the movie at night was taken.
Then came the decision of choosing which movie to play. We gave it a thought and after a while we had our answer. What better way to entertain the children than to play to them the DISNEY ANIMATION box office hit - "Kungfu Panda". A treat indeed!!
The fact that the children were enjoying the movie can clearly be seen through this picture as all heads remained unmoved and untilted until the movie actually ended!! Remarkable?..
Tahira's mission was a success as she stood among the delighted children, enjoying her moment???
We dearly thank Tahira for all her efforts to rejuvenate the lives of the children at The Dhaka Project and appreciate the kindness that she has shown towards our project and towards our children?

CLOTH DISTRIBUTION TO THE KIDS

As always, we were up to the task of providing the children of The Dhaka Project with the required disciplined and proper clothing. With the help of the donations received from the crew members of EMIRATES AIRLINE, all children, starting from nursery to those from EK, were provided with regular clothing on the 8^th of June, for the rest of the month.The clothes were able to bring up priceless smiles on the faces of the numerous children who have not had much to smile about regarding their unfortunate past.We are ever thankful to those kind souls out there who have made the effort to bring a change. If you want to help us in this noble deed of ours please feel free, because we are waiting for you with open arms!

PREFECT SELECTION DAY AT TDPS

On Wednesday the 3rd of May all the teachers nominated the students chosen by the class teacher of each class as the prefects of our school.
Then on 5th we called for a meeting and made them understand their responsibilities.
The 6th of May 2009 happens to be the most memorable day of our school.It was for the first time that we had chosen our "Prefects". First thing in the morning all of us got together with the students and explained to them their duties and responsibilities and made them aware of the fact that each class will be under the supervision of a prefect.Then the prefects were presented with the badges which they wore with great pride and applaud from everybody present over there. Although it was a simple ceremony, it was a significant one being the first step of our school in this area of prefect selection and handing over the duty of managing the school to the students themselves.
The Dhaka Project labours on to create the best of all the environment a school can have, where students feel safe and enjoy learning.