World Orphans Day :Envisioning a Better Tomorrow for Orphans
Across the World
By Adeeb Chowdhury
At this
very moment, hundreds of millions of young souls across the globe are withering
and wailing in despair, finding no solace, no comfort, and no guardians to
oversee them. Countless underprivileged orphans, abandoned and exploited, lead
a life of solitude and helplessness, no one to guide them. For them, food is
scarce and any shelter is only temporary. Street children without a home or any
caretakers are subjected to abuse on a regular basis.Exploitive, perverse
crooks only wait for young, innocent, hungry children to stumble into their
trap so they can be taken advantage of. Deprived of love, affection, and basic
resources for survival, they find themselves unable to seek hope for a better
tomorrow.
Providing a
“better tomorrow” for helpless and underprivileged orphans across the world is
the aim of the innovative and heartwarming “World Orphan Day 2017.” Organized
by the renowned World Orphan Center (WOC), this day motivates citizens to help
the orphaned children suffering from poverty and maltreatment. On the morning
of April 20, numerous participants, volunteers, speakers, and orphans gathered
cordially at Anika Community Center, Chittagong, to join in the promotion of
this glorious and inspiring message. In a nutshell, World Orphan Day can be
described as a day for charity and beginning of better job for society.
A wonderful
and energizing rally took place, as a vigorous crowd of participants of World
Orphan Day took to the streets. An enormous and attention-grabbing banner
bearing the name of the event and the message of “Our Kids, Our Future” was
placed at the forefront, as the crowd took strides across the city. One clear,
bold message was proclaimed that day: we
will not ignore the abuse of orphans across the world. The rally spread the
message of hope and encouragement to promote the rights and well-being of
underprivileged children.
WOC awarded
five extraordinary figures and families for their immense contribution to
making a better tomorrow for orphans.
The first is Col. Abu Naser Md. Toha, principal
of Chittagong Cantonment Public College-CCPC for his outstanding support for
orphan students at his institution. Mr. Toha has developed a fund for orphan
students who are supposed to leave school after their father's death. Now, CCPC
has developed a special fund for students who have lost their parents. He
treated the audience to a riveting speech in which he touched upon the
importance and necessity of taking care of orphaned needy children
The second recipient is the parents
of “Ekush baby.” Dr. Zakirul Islam and Shakila Akter Noor adopted the baby
whose parents left him in a dustbin on 21st February. The third recipient
is Saiful Hakim, a renowned youth leader, for his great work for orphans.
The fourth recipient is A J M Nasir
Uddin, Mayor of Chittagong City Corporation, for his out standing kind support
for orphans and underprivileged children.The fifth is the Barrister Tarekul
Akber Khandoker, a youth leader and founder of Youth Voice of Bangladeshm, for
his contribution to the development of youths.
At the discussion session, A J M
Nasir Uddin, Honorable Mayor of Chittagong City Corporation, was the chief
guest. He said, “The initiative taken by WOC should be supported by from every
corner of the world so that orphans will be benefited highly to develop their
life and career.”
He appreciated WOC activities from
his heart and welcome all kinds of support from him.
Lion Mostaque Hossain, Immediate
past lion Governor of Lions Clubs International, District 315-B4, Bangladesh was present as a special
guest and appreciated WOC Founder’s Dream making project for Orphans at the program.
He said, “If we can spread the
light of education among underprivileged children, it will make their career
and life better.”
Colonel Abu Naser Md. Toha also
addressed at the program where he described his vivid decision about creating a
fund for orphans at his institution for what he got the prize of RQ Move
inaugurated by WOC this year.
Other motivational speeches
brightened the event. Salma Huq, an environmental activist and a young woman
entrepreneur, delivered a wonderful tribute to the importance of mobilizing the
youth to help children who are suffering. Ln Md Mostaque Hossain, a
distinguished social worker and trainer, also graced the event with his
presence. SM Khaledur Rahman, a blind Bangladeshi police officer, charmed the
audience by relaying his brilliant story of overcoming his struggles and
achieving success. Some youth participants, Fatema Botul and Adeeb Chowdhury,
also gave speeches elaborating upon the message and meaning of World Orphan
Day.
Mohammad
Aman Ullah, the founder of WOC and conductor of the event, dazzled all those
present with a heartfelt tribute to the significance of his work. “All the
wealth of this beautiful world will be meaningless if any child dies because of
hunger,” he proclaimed vividly. He and his team have been advocating for World
Orphan Day to be recognized by the United Nations (UN) as an official special
day, and will hopefully soon succeed. “We inspire local organizations and
individuals to come forward and help the orphans. The orphans are a
particularly vulnerable group, and they need our support, which means both
individual and state initiatives are needed to reduce the risks and
vulnerabilities that they are exposed to,” he added.
Soborno
Isaac Bari, the brilliant child prodigy known as “Little Einstein”, served as
the Goodwill Ambassador of World Orphan Day. In a letter to Mr. Aman Ullah, the
young but incredible Soborno articulately described his faith that “we can
create homes for the homeless, and love the orphans, and one day—we shall overcome. This faith can give us
courage to face uncertainties of the future. It will give our tired feet new
strength as we continue our forward stride towards a city of hope where all
orphans can dream to become the next Sir Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein.”
Keep in
mind World Orphan Day’s apt and wonderful slogan—“Our Kids, Our Future.” This
slogan reflects the reality that when we are helping young orphaned kids
succeed, we are also helping our nation and our world make progress. We are
giving young children an opportunity to shine, and a platform for success in
the real world. This platform, if utilized properly, will help establish a
better tomorrow for us all. And, for that reason, we shall think of abused
orphan kids as our very own kids—for they will be among the next generation of
citizens brightening our world.
A very active volunteer team of WOC’s Volunteers wing called
Awesome Volunteers (AV) and Young Awesome Volunteers (YAV) managed every
activities of this program from feeding to hospitality.
This year WOC tried to reach about 180 countries to observe
World Orphans Day. 14 visionary features marked WOC’s approach. These are:
1. Delicious food 2. Toys 3. Clothes 4. Educational materials 5. Assurance of legal support
6. Tips for life and health skills 7. Inspiring speeches 8.
Spending quality time and selfie
9. Apprenticeship materials to make them skilled 10. Coding for orphans
11. Language development program12. Take care of orphan
centers/ orphanages/ shelter houses
13.Encouraging sponsors to focus on underprivileged children
14. Will encourage adoption.
