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https://www.launchgood.com/v4/campaign/lighting_up_gaza
“Whoever guides someone to goodness will have a reward like the one who did it.”
— Prophet Muhammad ﷺ
This campaign will collect all funds raised by June 10, 2016 at 11:45 PM EDT
Rolling blackouts through the night are a part of everyday life for the people of Gaza. Currently, the people of Gaza are offered electricity for only about 4 hours during daylight hours, leaving them in darkness when the evening sets.
Due to rolling blackouts, the people of Gaza resort to the use of candles and kerosene lamps in order to tend to their day to day tasks. Candles and kerosene lamps have been known to start fires and don't last long, making it an unsafe and inefficient option for families.
Laila Al-Haddad, author, activist, and parent of one of our students, explains why the situation in Gaza is so much different then elsewhere, and why projects like ours are so important:
Gaza has the dubious and unfortunate distinction of being the most closed off place on earth-most people cannot travel in and out of the territory due to hermetic border closures; and the flow of imports and exports is severely restricted: things we take for granted like ordering items off the internet or sending and receiving mail are simply not possible. This makes projects like this one particularly important, as very few organizations are given approval to bring items like solar lamps into Gaza. Gaza's electricity crisis started with Israel’s 2006 punitive bombing of Gaza’s sole power plant , which left the turbines crippled and only partially operational. This coupled with subsequent bans on the import of factory components to rebuild-part of a crippling 10 year long blockade, and severe restrictions on fuel and tax-collection and payment, has left the situation we see today-about 4 hours of power a day.
The people of Gaza, like you, wish to spend time with their families, complete their homework, eat dinner safely, and tend to day-to-day tasks when the sun sets. They wish for the basic rights every human should be afforded and wish to give their families and children a sense of normalcy in their everyday lives.
Recently, our school was blessed to host a young visitor named Majd for 2 days. Majd is a 10 year old boy from Gaza. With the help of caring sponsors, Majd was able to travel to the United States in order to receive medical care. Once Majd had recovered from his surgery, he spent two days at our school, talking with our students and sharing his experiences of living in Gaza with us.
Majd spoke about daily life in Gaza. He explained to our students that electricity turns on for a few hours during daylight hours, when it is least needed. He spoke about constant planes that fly overhead and said that the hardest part about living in Gaza is when they are given minutes to evacuate their home when the call is received. Majd allowed us to reflect on our own lives and helped us understand how it is an obligation on people like us, who have so much, to take action and help others.
At Tarbiyah Academy, it is our philosophy that authentic learning experiences start with reflection and result in action. It is through action in real world settings that students can apply what they've learned in the classroom while continuing to experience the learning process and inquire about the world around them. We believe that through empathy and service to our communities and those in need, can we truly learn.
As part of a service learning project at our school, the first and second grade homeroom class at Tarbiyah Academy has chosen to raise funds to send solar powered lanterns to Gaza. Our class is working with Rebuilding Alliance to purchase and ship the lanterns that we raise funds for to the children of Gaza.
We hope that this action-based project will relieve some of the ongoing stress and anxiety the people of Gaza face on a daily basis, living under occupation.
The solar powered lanterns we are purchasing for the people of Gaza are waterproof, inflatable, lightweight, and can be used for up to 10 hours a night when fully charged. With full usage on a daily basis, a lantern can last up to a full 2 years! With less usage per day, a lantern can last even longer, up to 10 years.
Our class is asking each of you to contribute to our project. No contribution is too small!
Just $10 will send a lamp to a child in Gaza to use for years and years to come!
$20 will send two lamps to two children.
$100 sends enough solar lamps for a whole family.
To learn more about Rebuilding Alliance and the work they do to rebuild war torn neighborhoods:
http://www.rebuildingalliance.org/
To learn more about the solar powered Luci Lamp:
https://mpowerd.com/
To learn more about Tarbiyah Academy and how we learn, visit our website:
www.tarbiyahacademy.com
Giving is better together! Your share could raise over 0.
https://www.launchgood.com/v4/campaign/lighting_up_gaza
“Whoever guides someone to goodness will have a reward like the one who did it.”
— Prophet Muhammad ﷺ
Heidi Wahba
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Faten Alkassem
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Sumbal Raza
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Dalia Elamawy
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Laura Jaghlit
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Sabeen 'Saba' Lakhani
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Ramadan Mubarak from Lighting Up Gaza!
Dear Supporters and Friends,
Assalamu Alaikum and Peace.
On behalf of the first and second grade class at Tarbiyah Academy, I would like to say Ramadan Mubarak, and I pray that we are all brought closer to our Creator during these blessed days and nights of Ramadan.
When my class and I sit together on our carpet for our class meetings and we discuss the Light Up Gaza campaign, monitoring the progress it is making...I wish each of you could see the excitement on the students' faces and hear the excitement in their voices when they realize our campaign has generated enough funds to send over 850 personal solar powered lamps to Gaza. Not only have you provided a basic need and resource to people in crisis, but you are setting a model example of empathy and action to young learners, which, in sha Allah, will create positive, far-reaching, lifelong lessons for these young students.
With just 3 days left of our campaign, donors continue to support our project and we ask Allah to reward each and every one of you. While we have surpassed our goal of $8,000-alhamdullilah-we continue to encourage others to be a part of Lighting Up Gaza. Please continue to share this campaign with your family, friends, colleagues, neighbors, and acquaintances. Just $10 will provide light to someone for years to come, in sha Allah. Thank you for your continued support.
Hagar Aboubakr
First and Second Grade Homeroom Teacher
Tarbiyah Academy
Light Up Gaza-Update!
Dear Donors and Supporters of the Light Up Gaza Campaign,
Assalamu Alaikum and Peace.
Last Friday was an exciting day at Tarbiyah Academy. The founder of Rebuilding Alliance, Donna Baransky-Walker, paid a visit to our school to talk with our students about Rebuilding Alliance's relief efforts in Gaza. She was in the D.C. area, meeting with congressmen and representatives from the National Security Agency to lobby them to help rebuild villages in Gaza that have been demolished. We were so thrilled when she offered to stop by our school and meet with us, and it was wonderful for our students to connect with the that link- the link between us and Gaza-that will purchase the lamps our campaign is funding, ship them to Gaza, and distribute them to families and children in need, in sha Allah.
Ms. Baransky-Walker spoke to our students about the logistics of getting the lamps to Gaza. She explained that they are designed in California, transported by ship to Israel from China where they are manufactured, and then transported to Gaza by truck...but perhaps more profound were her stories about her visits to Gaza and her interactions with the people of Gaza. She talked about families whose lives were devastated under the circumstances of life in Gaza. Families members lost. Villages destroyed. She shared pictures from her visits which generated many inquiries from our young students who are struggling to fully understand the unexplainable injustice beyond the day-to-day playground scuffle.
Ms. Baransky-Walker described going to Gaza as "wonderful and heartbreaking." She said the amount of destruction is "overwhelming" and further explained that there are 1.2 million people in Gaza and "everyone is without light." Her visit has motivated us even more to continue to work towards lighting up Gaza, as much as we possibly can. There is so much work to be done in Gaza-villages, towns, and lives need to be rebuilt, but every effort counts and DOES, indeed, make a difference in individual lives, as Ms. Baransky-Walker witnessed herself during her last visit when she, personally, distributed their first pallet of solar powered lanterns.
Once again, thank you for your continued support. Jazakum Allahu khairun and please continue to share our campaign and encourage others to Light Up Gaza.
Hagar Aboubakr Homeroom Teacher, Tarbiyah Academy
Lighting Up Gaza-Update!
Dear Donors and Supporters of the Light Up Gaza Campaign,
Assalamu Alaikum.
Your generous contributions to our service learning project-the "Light Up Gaza" campaign-continue to inspire and motivate others to give and make a difference. We continue to receive donations to the campaign, currently totaling $7,536! That's 753 solar-powered Luci Lights for children and families who currently have access to electricity for only 4 hours a day. We pray these lights will create a positive change for those in need for years and years to come, and relieve some of the stress and anxiety that characterizes daily life in Gaza.
With just 15 days left in our campaign, we continue to work towards raising funds so we can purchase as many solar lamps as possible. Just $10 will provide someone with a personal solar light for years and years to come. Please continue to share our campaign and spread the word, so others may share in lighting up Gaza, as well.
Two of our students, 2nd grader, Mariya and 1st grader, Masa, wanted to thank you on behalf of our whole class. You can see their thank you video messag here:
Thank you all, again, and may the light you have given to others be reflected back into your own lives.
Hagar Aboubakr-Homeroom Teacher at Tarbiyah Academy
Lighting Up Gaza-Thank You!
Dear Donors,
Assalamu Alaikum and Peace.
On behalf of our whole class, I would like to thank each of you for your continued and generous support of our campaign to light up Gaza. We pray that these lamps ease the pain and anxiety Palestinians in Gaza face on a daily basis and that you are rewarded immensely for your generosity.
This week, LaunchGood recognized and featured our campaign in their newsletter, naming it, "LaunchGooder of the Week!" This was very exciting to our whole class and furthermore, allowed our campaign to surpass our $5,000 goal. We would like to continue to encourage others to contribute to our campaign and completely shatter our $5,000 goal.
Qasim and Zeyad, two of our second grade students, wanted to thank you on behalf of all our students. Please check out their messages to you!
Qasim's thank you message:
Zeyad's thank you message:
Thank you again, and please continue to share our campaign and encourage others to light up Gaza!
Hagar Aboubakr Homeroom Teacher-Tarbiyah Academy
Message From 1st/2nd Grade Class at Tarbiyah Academy
Assalamu Alaikum Dear Donors,
Our class has been deeply touched by the response to our campaign and by all of your generous contributions. May Allah maximize the benefit for those in need and accept this effort from us all as good deeds on our scales.
The first and second grade class has been so excited as they follow our campaign and wanted to send all of you a special thank you. Please see their heartfelt messages below.
Jazakum Allahu Khairun
Hagar Aboubakr-1st/2nd Grade Homeroom Teacher at Tarbiyah Academy
"Thank you for supporting us and your generosity. All the lamps will go to Gaza." -Noor
"Thank you for helping Gaza and getting them solar powered lights. Tell all your friends and family and maybe we can help everyone." -Ibrahim
"Thank you for helping us and at the same time you are helping us, you are also helping Gaza. May Allah reward you." -Mariya
"Thank you for supporting us and Gaza." -Ruqayyah
"Thank you for raising money for solar powered lights to give to Gaza."-Dawud
"In sha Allah, Gaza will be free from all the bad stuff that's happening. May Allah reward you." -Isa
"In sha Allah, Gaza will be full of lights from all of us and may Allah reward you." -Omar T.
"May Allah reward you for giving them light so they can do their homework at home and at school. Allah may give you more good deeds." -Anna
"I hope you get a lot of good deeds for giving Gaza a lot of solar powered lamps, because a small amount can make a big difference."-Qasim
"Thank you for supporting us and may Allah bless you." -Ismail
"May the lamps get there safely and may Allah give you lots of thawwab for what you have done." -Zeyad
"Thank you for helping raise money for Gaza and getting solar lights there." -Omar A.
"Jazakum Allahu khairun." -Hatim
"Thank you for helping Gaza and us raise money to send solar lamps to Gaza. May Allah give you good deeds."-Masa
"Thank you for helping us send lamps to Gaza."-Serene
Giving is better together! Your share could raise over 0.
https://www.launchgood.com/v4/campaign/lighting_up_gaza
“Whoever guides someone to goodness will have a reward like the one who did it.”
— Prophet Muhammad ﷺ
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Giving is better together! Your share could raise over 0.
https://www.launchgood.com/v4/campaign/lighting_up_gaza
“Whoever guides someone to goodness will have a reward like the one who did it.”
— Prophet Muhammad ﷺ
