CHAMPIONS OF CHARITY – stars in sport … and a life of giving – MOTHER TERESA – ‘It’s not how much we give but how much love we put into giving’

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On the occasion of the third anniversary of the Global Humanitarian Leadership Award presented by the United Nations to honor His Highness Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Amir of the State of Kuwait and naming His Highness as “The Global Humanitarian Leader”   and the State of Kuwait as a Humanitarian Center … champion Balsam Alayoub in cooperation with Kuwait Sporting Club organized a visit by the children of “A Champion Among Us” program who are affiliated to the Direct Aid Society  to dedicate  presents to the children of one of the orphanages constructed and managed by the Direct Aid Society  in one of the African countries.

Champion Balsam Alayoub stated that we are in Kuwait Sporting Club and through the sports and society committee, in addition to “A Champion Among Us” program and in cooperation with Balsam International, are keen to teach the children social and practical life skills besides sports and the arts of life to give the child an opportunity to recognize the humanitarian and development role that rests on the shoulders of all of us as humans with respect  to supporting humanity and empowering communities…

Moreover, a sports champion also has a role to play in giving others opportunities and hope in life through what he or she can provide with regard  to contributing in spreading science, knowledge, culture and social behaviors based on activities and initiatives in various fields. She added that sports stars all over the world participate in all fields of life as sports champions and stars in their communities and there are many examples of international organizations seeking the assistance of champions to spotlight a certain disease or promoting a health, humanitarian or environmental campaign…etc.

Champion Balsam Alayoub added “We also found that it is a wonderful occasion that coincides with naming His Highness Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Amir of the State of Kuwait as “The Global Humanitarian Leader”   and the State of Kuwait as a Humanitarian Center and we have to seize the opportunity to introduce the children of “A Champion Among Us” program to this outstanding and great field of charity activities and train them on the concept of humanitarian donation with their own boxes which they personally prepared, with messages written by them, to be given to children filled with clothes, shoes, toys and school supplies to play a role in giving others hope in life and their future.

Through field visits organized by the Direct Aid Society, the children get to know the most prominent Kuwaiti figure in the field of humanitarian action, the late Dr Abdul Rahman Hamoud Al Sumait and the development projects he established in addition to his work in service of Man in the continent  of Africa.

Through “A Champion Among Us” program we are working on achieving the goals of the UN sustainable development, and are training children on how to understand and achieve such goals. Hence, carrying out this kind of training and these visits help the children to understand such concepts in a practical manner and enable them to put them into practice in their community in the future in addition to becoming interested in this aspect of life.

Teaching a child to understand the aspect of humanitarian donation is very important at a time when we suffer in our communities from having children divorced away from social reality due to the fact that they represent a generation closely related technology and smart devices which deprive them from the opportunity of understanding what is going on in the real world and the reality of daily life in their communities and in the world as well.

Accordingly, we kept the door open for the children to learn about the pioneering humanitarian figures in Kuwaiti society and in the world to give them real figures setting the example that may positively impact them in the future and help  those young champions to be bright stars in the field of sports and in their communities through the social impact they provide.

In this context, I would like to extend my sincere gratitude and appreciation to Kuwait Sporting Club and Direct Aid Society for their cooperation and unlimited support.

Mr Fahd Ali Alghanim, the board of directors’ member and the treasurer of Kuwait Sporting Club stated that humanitarian action is a noble cause and it represents a firmly established foundation in Kuwaiti society. Hence, our duty as individuals and sports institutions is to work on building the character of the player and sports champion through the concept of humanitarian donation and the empowerment of others.

In our Kuwait Sporting Club, we believe in social responsibility. It represents the core of our work as a club and as a sports, social, and cultural institution. We are also proud of taking the lead in teaching our young stars preeminent humanitarian concepts that focus on building their character and empowering them for the future to be good individuals in society who set a positive example as a human being and athletic individual.

Mr Alghanim also added that in Kuwait Sporting Club, we are constantly working on social contributions and consolidate our social role through the players and the champions which represents our duty towards our society and our country, the State of Kuwait. In this context, I would like to extend my deep feelings of appreciation and gratitude to the champion Balsam Alayoub for her devoted work and outstanding activities in the field of sports development in addition to her magnificent initiatives presented in the name of the State of Kuwait and Kuwait Sporting Club.

In statement given by Mr. Majed Alzaaby, the Head of Public Relations Department and Media in Direct Aid Society he said that…

It was a nice and kind gesture to be honored by the visit and the initiative of “A Champion Among Us” program and Kuwait Sporting Club. We are proud of having such awareness and the culture of instilling the concept of humanitarian donation in a child’s mind in particular, as such a concept represents one of the noblest approaches of education. In addition, we found that the program of “A Champion Among Us” currently provides a unique approach to children in the State of Kuwait which does not depend solely on the aspect of creativity in sports but also represents an integrated aspect aimed at creating a good individual in the society based on a sports culture that is considered the best means of community-building, the spread of peace, unity and cooperation.

I was really astonished by the magnitude of affection and love I felt on the part of those children and their feelings of happiness by the visit they made and the presentation of the gifts in the boxes they prepared in addition to the messages they wrote and attached to the gifts … beautiful also, is the contents of such boxes that included new clothes, toys and useful devices that any child in the world would be happy to receive.

In Direct Aid Society, we pay great attention to the development projects carried out in the African continent that are particularly related to the construction of schools or orphanages and we insist that they include sports facilities like courts or gymnasiums due to their importance in human development  and providing individuals with a significant aspect in life…

In fact, I was extremely impressed by the project of “A Champion Among Us” that is under the auspices of the champion Balsam Alayoub as such a program certainly embodies a wonderful thought and fine human dimensions. For sure we are confident that sports is one of the most substantial means that empower the peoples of the world and help in the spread of peace.

The visit of “A Champion Among Us” in cooperation with Kuwait Sporting Club represents a visit that is the first of its kind in regard to cooperation in the humanitarian sports field of Direct Aid Society and we are looking forward to accomplishing more cooperation in the near future as we all cooperate today to keep working on sustaining the humanitarian action in the world. We are proud in the State of Kuwait to be a Humanitarian Center working under His Highness the Amir’s visionary leadership in his capacity as “The Global Humanitarian Leader  and as a prominent  humanitarian figure that sets an example to be positively followed.

It is worth mentioning that Direct Aid Society was established in 1981 by its founder the late Dr. Abdul Rahman Hamoud Al Sumait who focused his work on the African continent and achieved real development by building hospitals, universities, schools and orphanages….. The  Direct Aid Society is currently presided over by Dr Abdul-Rahman Saleh Al-Muhailan, the Chairman of the Board of Directors. Its Director  General is Dr Abdullah Abdulrahman Al-Sumait who carries on his shoulders the responsibility of accomplishing the mission of his late father, Dr Abdul Rahman Hamoud Al Sumait.

The State of Kuwait has always supported the culture of humanitarian action and voluntary work. Today the State of Kuwait is working on this deeply rooted culture through the educational curricula adopted by the Ministry of Education which include the curriculum of “The Value of Voluntarism and its Dimensions” in order to create generations capable of  taking over such responsibility and  having the ability to be an extension of the State of Kuwait all over the world in addition to being ambassadors of humanity in every spot of the world.

It is also worth noting that the project of “A Champion Among Us” was founded by the champion Balsam Alayoub in 2015 as a development sports project working in harmony with the goals of sustainable development of Kuwait Sporting Club  and she supervises the project through her development institution “Balsam International” that is managed in cooperation with her partner Mrs. Shaima Bin Hussein.

The program of “A Champion Among Us” concentrates on providing training to children in various periods of time through summer programs and semiannual and annual programs as well. The program of “A Champion Among Us” also puts stress on the aspects of developmental, cultural and sports creativity and has received much international interest since its launching in addition to being documented through a short documentary film produced by the Japan national broadcaster NHK, and obtaining the classification of one of the best sports programs in the continent of Asia and in the Middle East Region.

Champion Balsam Alayoub in cooperation with Kuwait Sporting Club is still organizing and providing training to the program in cooperation with elite trainers and coaches working in the field of sports and in other fields. Moreover, champion Balsam Alayoub is also working on spreading the culture of “the role of the sports champion in society”.

‘Instilling the concept of humanitarian donation in the child’s mind is one of the noblest approaches of education and the program of “A Champion Among Us” is a magnificent and distinguished example of using sports to empower the children and develop the communities.  — Majed Alzaaby

Humanitarian action is a noble action and it is a firmly established foundation in Kuwaiti society. Hence, our duty as individuals and sports institutions is to work on developing the character of the player and sports champion through the concept of humanitarian donation and the empowerment of others.  — Fahd Ali Alghanim’

‘The children of “A Champion Among Us” acquire various cultures in addition to sports, the most prominent of which is the culture of humanitarian donation and human development. — Balsam Alayoub’

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