CAIRO: Students at The American University in Cairo (AUC) have a long tradition of being actively engaged in community service. During the holy month of Ramadan, they have focused their efforts in assisting the needy in the underprivileged parts of Cairo. The community service clubs have worked during the summer to collect donations, distribute thousands of food packages to poor families around Cairo and prepare for Eid projects. Volunteers in Action (VIA), which is the university's largest community service club, has distributed 2,500 food packages to orphanages in Meet Okba. “The club is mainly developing and supporting the people in Meet Okba in particular starting 2 years ago until present, so they always have the priority; however, we are now developing other regions in Egypt to reach more needy people," said Aya Wael, VIA president. It is also organizing the delivery of 2,300 iftar-to-go packages, which are delivered daily to people in need. Moreover, the Help Club distributed 1,000 food packs to the underprivileged residents in the Masr El Qadima district and also organized a project, Rahman Delivery, which organizes the preparation and distribution of around 250 ready-to-eat meals per day throughout Ramadan. “Help Club has been working in Masr El Qadima for more than 15 years; we know the people there and they know us as well, that gives us credibility and enables us to make sure that every single pack or meal we distribute goes to a family or a person that deserves the help," said Moemen Abdel Azeem, Help Club president. As part of Help Club's children program that runs all year long in Masr El Qadima, the club is planning to take the kids shopping towards the end of the month for Eid clothes as well as distributing packs of toys and candies. For the ninth year in a row, Alashanak ya Balady (AYB) is distributing more than 1,500 food packages in a collective effort by AYB NGO, AYB AUC, Ain Shams University, Arab Academy for Science, Technology & Maritime Transport (AAST), and German University in Cairo (GUC). The packs are distributed in Ain El-Sira, Ezbet Abu Qarn, Boulaq Abu El-Ella, and El-Matarriya. “We chose to develop Ain El-Sira for AYB AUC according to that it was on the top of the list of poor areas in Egypt, and needed development more than charity, in addition to short distance from AUC as much as how accessible and safe it is," said Raghda El-Ibrashi, the founder of AYB AUC back in 2002. “This Eid we will be working on a Keswa donations campaign; collecting donated clothes from donors then sorting them out and display them with trivial prices for the people of Ain El-Sira to buy from," said Nayera Abdel Hady, AYB president. “Students at AUC have always proved their dedication and commitment towards their community," said Ramza Sedky, associate director of AUC's community service program. “Every year, they make sure they sustain their standards in helping the needy that wait for them from year to year."
